Difference between revisions of "Centaur" - New World Encyclopedia

Latest revision as of 23:50, 3 December 2023

Bronze Centaur in Malmaison, France

In Greek mythology, the centaurs (Greek: Κένταυροι) are a race of mythical creatures that are half human and half horse. In early Attic vase-paintings, they are depicted as the head and torso of a man with his waist joined to the horse's withers, where the horse's neck would be. This human and animal combination has led many writers to treat them as "liminal" beings, caught between the two natures of feral animalism and cogent humanity.

While generally associated with barbarous behavior, notorious for being overly indulgent drinkers, given to violence when intoxicated, and generally uncultured, even in Greek mythology a well-known centaur (Chiron) was intelligent, civilized, and kind. Thus, at least in some writers' hopes, and noticeably more so in modern fantasy writings, the centaur can overcome his baser instincts and rise to the level of enlightened humanity, symbolizing the raising of human consciousness to the level of maturity where living for the sake of others triumphs over self-interest.

Etymology

The etymology of the word centaur from the Greek word kentauros could be understood as ken–tauros, which means "piercing bull." It is also possible that this word in fact comes from the Mesopotamian word for Centaurus, the constellation that in Mesopotamian culture depicted an epic battle of gods. The Greeks later renamed the constellation for its depiction of a man riding a horse, the significance of which has been suggested as a collective but vague memory of horse riders from Thessaly that at one time invaded Greece.^[1]

Origin

Centaur from Crete

Did you know?

The idea of centaurs may have arisen when non-riding cultures first saw nomads mounted on horses.

The most common theory holds that the idea of centaurs came from the first reaction of a non-riding culture to nomads who were mounted on horses. This theory suggests that such riders would appear as half-man, half-animal. Bernal Díaz del Castillo reported that the Aztecs had this misapprehension about Spanish cavalrymen.^[2]

Horse taming and horseback culture evolved first in the southern steppe grasslands of Central Asia, perhaps approximately in modern Kazakhstan. In the Minoan Aegean world, the Lapith tribe of Thessaly, who were the kinsmen of the Centaurs in myth, is described as the inventors of horseback riding by Greek writers. The Thessalian tribes also claimed their horse breeds were descended from the centaurs.

Anthropologist and writer Robert Graves speculated that the centaurs of Greek myth were a dimly-remembered, pre-Hellenic fraternal earth cult who had the horse as a totem.

Of the various classical Greek authors who mentioned centaurs, Pindar was the first who describes what is undoubtedly a combined monster. Previous authors such as Homer only used words such as Pheres (beasts) that could also mean ordinary savage men riding ordinary horses. However, contemporaneous representations of hybrid centaurs can be found in archaic Greek art.

Myths

Painting by Sebastiano Ricci of Centaurs at the marriage of Pirithous, king of the Lapithae

According to Greek mythology, the centaurs descended from Centaurus, who mated with the Magnesian mares. Centaurus was the son of either Ixion and Nephele (the cloud made in the image of Hera) or of Apollo and Stilbe, daughter of the river god Peneus. In the latter version of the story his twin brother was Lapithus, ancestor of the Lapiths, thus making the two warring peoples cousins.

The most popular myth featuring centaurs is the story of the wedding of Hippodamia, and Pirithous, king of the Lapithae. Kin to Hippodamia, the centaurs attended the wedding, but became so drunk and riotous at the ceremony that they attempted to ride off with the bride and other women. A large and bloody battle ensued, and despite their size and strength, the centaurs were defeated and driven away.^[3] The strife among these cousins is interpreted as similar to the defeat of the Titans by the Olympian gods—the contests with the centaurs typify the struggle between civilization and barbarism. Other myths include the story of Atalanta, a girl raised in the wild by animals, who slew two centaurs who threatened her, thanks to her excellent archery skills.

Chiron instructs a young Achilles.

The most famous centaur was Chiron, an old, wise, and legendarily gifted centaur. He is featured in many stories, being credited with raising Aesculapis the physician and Actaeon the hunter, as well as teaching the greatest of Greek warriors, Achilles. There are two conflicting stories of his death. The first involves an accidental injury caused by Hercules that was so painful but not mortal that Zeus allowed Chiron to die with dignity. The other story involves Chiron's willful sacrificing of his life in order to save Prometheus from being punished by Zeus.^[4] Ironically, Chiron, the master of the healing arts, could not heal himself, so he willingly gave up his immortality and was placed in the sky, for the Greeks as the constellation Sagittarius, and in modern times represented by the constellation of the Southern Hemisphere, Centaurus.

Centaurs in artwork

Lapith fighting a centaur from the Parthenon

Vignettes of the battle between Lapiths and Centaurs were sculpted in bas-relief on the frieze of the Parthenon.

The mythological episode of the centaur Nessus carrying off Deianira, the bride of Heracles, provided Giambologna (1529–1608), a Flemish sculptor whose career was spent in Italy, a splendid opportunity to devise compositions with two forms in violent interaction. He made several versions of Nessus carrying off Deianira, represented by examples in the Louvre, the Grünes Gewölbe, Dresden, the Frick Collection, New York City, and the Huntington Library, San Marino, California. His followers, like Adriaen de Vries and Pietro Tacca, continued to make countless repetitions of the subject. When Carrier-Belleuse tackled the same play of forms in the nineteenth century, he titled it Abduction of Hippodameia.

Two female centaurs crowning Aphrodite, a mosaic

Centaurs in fiction

Centaurs have appeared many times and in many places in literature and popular fiction. One example is the Centaur Inn featured in Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors. Considered dangerous, even demonic in the medieval period, the centaur experienced somewhat of a rebirth in more recent times. Centaurs are featured in C. S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia, and numerous fantasy novels by a variety of twentieth-century authors. The centaur still plays the role of bringing together the animal and the human, able to talk, think, and reason like human beings, while at the same time having the strength and physical abilities of a strong and swift animal. Centaurs in modern literature seem to have overcome their barbarism of old, however, and, while still a dangerous enemy to humankind, are more often portrayed as supporters on the side of goodness.

Notes

↑ "Centaur," The Compact Edition of The Oxford English Dictionary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1971).
↑ Stuart Chase, “The Six Hundred,” in Mexico: A Study of Two Americas, chap. 4 (University of Virginia Hypertext, Retrieved June 4, 2007).
↑ Edith Hamilton, Mythology (Back Bay Books, 1998 ISBN 0316341517).
↑ Ibid.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

Costello, Peter. The Magic Zoo: The Natural History of Faulous Animals, Including Dragons, Mermaids, Unicorns and Centaurs. St. Martin's Press, 1979. ISBN 0312504217
Graves, Robert. Greek Gods and Heroes. Laurel Leaf, 1965. ISBN 0440932211
Hamilton, Edith. Mythology. Back Bay Books, 1998. ISBN 0316341517

External links

All links retrieved December 3, 2023.

"Kentauroi Thessalioi" Theoi Project.

Credits

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[1] "Centaur," The Compact Edition of The Oxford English Dictionary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1971).

[2] Stuart Chase, “The Six Hundred,” in Mexico: A Study of Two Americas, chap. 4 (University of Virginia Hypertext, Retrieved June 4, 2007).

[3] Edith Hamilton, Mythology (Back Bay Books, 1998 ISBN 0316341517).

[4] Ibid.

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[2]

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 [[Category:Politics and social sciences]]
 [[Category:Anthropology]]
-{{Claimed}}
+[[Category:Mythical creatures]]
+{{Submitted}}{{Images OK}}{{Approved}}{{Paid}}{{Copyedited}}
+[[Image:Centaure Malmaison.jpg|thumb|240 px| Bronze Centaur in Malmaison, [[France]]]]
-[[Image:Sebastiano Ricci 045.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Painting by Sebastiano Ricci, of Centaurs at the marriage of Pirithous, king of the Lapithae]]
+In [[Greek mythology]], the '''centaurs''' ([[Greek language|Greek]]: Κένταυροι) are a race of [[mythical creature]]s that are half [[human]] and half [[horse]]. In early Attic vase-paintings, they are depicted as the head and torso of a man with his waist joined to the horse's withers, where the horse's neck would be. This human and [[animal]] combination has led many writers to treat them as "liminal" beings, caught between the two natures of feral [[animalism]] and cogent humanity.
+{{toc}}
+While generally associated with [[barbarian|barbarous]] behavior, notorious for being overly indulgent drinkers, given to violence when intoxicated, and generally uncultured, even in Greek mythology a well-known centaur ([[Chiron]]) was intelligent, civilized, and kind. Thus, at least in some writers' hopes, and noticeably more so in modern [[fantasy]] writings, the centaur can overcome his baser [[instinct]]s and rise to the level of enlightened humanity, symbolizing the raising of human consciousness to the level of maturity where living for the sake of others triumphs over self-interest.
+==Etymology==
+The etymology of the word ''centaur'' from the [[Greek Language|Greek]] word ''kentauros'' could be understood as ''ken–tauros,'' which means "piercing bull." It is also possible that this word in fact comes from the [[Mesopotamia]]n word for ''Centaurus,'' the [[constellation]] that in Mesopotamian culture depicted an epic battle of gods. The Greeks later renamed the constellation for its depiction of a man riding a [[horse]], the significance of which has been suggested as a collective but vague memory of horse riders from [[Thessaly]] that at one time invaded Greece.<ref> "Centaur," ''The Compact Edition of The Oxford English Dictionary'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1971).</ref>
-In [[Greek mythology]], the '''centaurs''' ([[Greek language|Greek]]: Κένταυροι) are a race of creatures composed of part [[human]] and part [[horse]]. In early Attic vase-paintings, they are depicted as the head and torso of a human joined at the (human's) waist to the horse's withers, where the horse's neck would be.
+==Origin==
+[[Image:Kentaur Kreta asb 2004 PICT3436.jpg|thumb|left|200 px|Centaur from [[Crete]]]]
+{{readout|The most common theory holds that the idea of centaurs came from the first reaction of a non-riding [[culture]] to [[nomad]]s who were mounted on [[horse]]s.|right|250px|The idea of centaurs may have arisen when non-riding [[culture]]s first saw [[nomad]]s mounted on [[horse]]s.}} This theory suggests that such riders would appear as half-man, half-animal. [[Bernal Díaz del Castillo]] reported that the [[Aztec]]s had this misapprehension about [[Spain|Spanish]] [[cavalry]]men.<ref>Stuart Chase, “The Six Hundred,” in ''Mexico: A Study of Two Americas,'' chap. 4 ([http://xroads.virginia.edu/~Hyper2/chase/ch04.html University of Virginia Hypertext], Retrieved June 4, 2007).</ref>
-This half-human and half-animal composition has lead many writers to treat them as [[liminal being]]s, caught between the two natures, embodied in contrasted myths, and as the embodiment of untamed nature, as in their battle with the [[Lapiths]], or conversely as teachers, like [[Chiron]].
+Horse taming and horseback culture evolved first in the southern [[steppe]] grasslands of Central [[Asia]], perhaps approximately in modern [[Kazakhstan]]. In the [[Minoan civilization|Minoan]] [[Aegean Sea|Aegean world]], the Lapith tribe of Thessaly, who were the kinsmen of the Centaurs in myth, is described as the inventors of horseback riding by Greek writers. The Thessalian tribes also claimed their horse breeds were descended from the centaurs.
-==Centauromachy==
+[[Anthropology|Anthropologist]] and writer [[Robert Graves]] speculated that the centaurs of Greek myth were a dimly-remembered, pre-Hellenic fraternal earth cult who had the horse as a [[totem]].
-The Centaurs are best known for their fight with the [[Lapith]]ae, caused by their attempt to carry off [[Hippodamia, wife of Pirithous|Hippodamia]], and the rest of the Lapith women, on the day of her marriage to [[Pirithous]], king of the Lapithae, himself the son of [[Ixion]]. The strife among these cousins is a metaphor for the conflict between the lower appetites and civilized behavior in humankind. [[Theseus]], who happened to be present, a hero and founder of cities, threw the balance in favor of the right order of things, and assisted [[Pirithous]]. The Centaurs were driven off or destroyed.<ref>[[Plutarch]], ''Theseus,'' 30</ref><ref>[[Ovid]], ''[[Metamorphoses (poem)|Metamorphoses]]'' xii. 210</ref><ref>[[Diodorus Siculus]]iv. 69, 70</ref>. Another Lapith hero, [[Caeneus]], who was invulnerable to weapons, was beaten into the earth by Centaurs wielding rocks and the branches of trees.
-Like the [[Titanomachy]], the defeat of the [[Titan (mythology)|Titan]]s by the Olympian gods, the contests with the Centaurs typify the struggle between civilization and barbarism.
+Of the various classical Greek authors who mentioned centaurs, [[Pindar]] was the first who describes what is undoubtedly a combined monster. Previous authors such as [[Homer]] only used words such as ''Pheres'' (beasts) that could also mean ordinary savage men riding ordinary horses. However, contemporaneous representations of hybrid centaurs can be found in archaic Greek [[art]].
-==Notable individual centaurs==
+==Myths==
-Amongst the Centaurs, the most famous individuals were [[Nessus (mythology)|Nessus]], [[Chiron]], [[Pholus]] and [[Eurytion]], all of which featured in the stories of [[Heracles]]. Another pair named Hylaeus and Rhoetus were destroyed by [[Meleager]] when they attempted to assault [[Atalanta]] in the wilderness.
+[[Image:Sebastiano Ricci 045.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Painting by Sebastiano Ricci of Centaurs at the marriage of Pirithous, king of the Lapithae]]
+According to [[Greek mythology]], the centaurs descended from Centaurus, who mated with the Magnesian mares. Centaurus was the son of either Ixion and Nephele (the cloud made in the image of [[Hera]]) or of [[Apollo]] and [[Stilbe]], daughter of the river god [[Peneus]]. In the latter version of the story his twin brother was [[Lapithus]], ancestor of the Lapiths, thus making the two warring peoples cousins.
-==Art==
+The most popular myth featuring centaurs is the story of the wedding of Hippodamia, and Pirithous, king of the [[Lapith|Lapithae]]. Kin to Hippodamia, the centaurs attended the wedding, but became so drunk and riotous at the ceremony that they attempted to ride off with the bride and other women. A large and bloody battle ensued, and despite their size and strength, the centaurs were defeated and driven away.<ref> Edith Hamilton, ''Mythology'' (Back Bay Books, 1998 ISBN 0316341517).</ref> The strife among these cousins is interpreted as similar to the defeat of the [[Titan]]s by the Olympian gods—the contests with the centaurs typify the struggle between [[civilization]] and [[barbarian|barbarism]]. Other myths include the story of Atalanta, a girl raised in the wild by animals, who slew two centaurs who threatened her, thanks to her excellent [[archery]] skills.
-Vignettes of the battle between Lapiths and Centaurs were sculpted in [[bas-relief]] on the [[frieze]] of the [[Parthenon]], which was dedicated to wise [[Athena]]. The battle with the Lapithae, and the adventure of [[Heracles]] with Pholus<ref>[[Apollodorus]], ii. 5; Diod. Sic. IV, li</ref> are favourite subjects of Greek art.<ref>see [[Sidney Colvin]], ''Journal of Hellenic Studies,'' I, 1881, and the exhaustive article in [[Wilhelm Heinrich Roscher|Roscher]]'s ''Ausführliches Lexikon der griechischen und römischen Mythologie''</ref>
+[[File:Chiron instructs young Achilles - Ancient Roman fresco.jpg|thumb|200 px|left|Chiron instructs a young [[Achilles]].]]
-[[Image:Ladycentaurs.JPG|left|250px|thumb|Two female centaurs crowning [[Aphrodite]], a mosaic]]
+The most famous centaur was [[Chiron]], an old, wise, and legendarily gifted centaur. He is featured in many stories, being credited with raising Aesculapis the physician and Actaeon the hunter, as well as teaching the greatest of Greek warriors, [[Achilles]]. There are two conflicting stories of his death. The first involves an accidental injury caused by [[Hercules]] that was so painful but not mortal that [[Zeus]] allowed Chiron to die with dignity. The other story involves Chiron's willful sacrificing of his life in order to save [[Prometheus]] from being punished by Zeus.<ref> Ibid. </ref> Ironically, Chiron, the master of the healing arts, could not heal himself, so he willingly gave up his immortality and was placed in the sky, for the Greeks as the [[constellation]] [[Sagittarius]], and in modern times represented by the constellation of the Southern Hemisphere, [[Centaurus]].
-The mythological episode of the centaur Nessus carrying off Deianira, the bride of [[Heracles]], also provided [[Giambologna]] (1529-1608), a Flemish sculptor whose career was spent in Italy, splendid opportunities to devise compositions with two forms in violent interaction. He made several versions of Nessus carrying off Deianira, represented by examples in the [[Louvre Museum|Louvre]], the [[Grünes Gewölbe]], Dresden, the [[Frick Collection]], New York and the [[Huntington Library]], San Marino, California. His followers, like [[Adriaen de Vries]] and [[Pietro Tacca]], continued to make countless repetitions of the subject. When [[Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse|Carrier-Belleuse]] tackled the same play of forms in the 19th century he titled it ''Abduction of [[Hippodameia]]'' .
-==Theories of origin==
+==Centaurs in artwork==
+[[Image:South metope 30 Parthenon BM.jpg|thumb|right|240 px|Lapith fighting a centaur from the Parthenon]]
+Vignettes of the battle between Lapiths and Centaurs were sculpted in [[bas-relief]] on the [[frieze]] of the [[Parthenon]].
-The most common theory holds that the idea of centaurs came from the first reaction of a non-riding culture, as in the [[Minoan civilization|Minoan]] [[Aegean Sea|Aegean world]], to nomads who were mounted on horses. The theory goes that such riders would appear as half-man, half-animal. ([[Bernal Díaz del Castillo]] reported that the [[Aztec]]s had this misapprehension about Spanish cavalrymen.)<ref>Stuart Chase, ''Mexico: A Study of Two Americas'', Chapter IV ([http://xroads.virginia.edu/~Hyper2/chase/ch04.html University of Virginia Hypertext]), accessed 24 April 2006.</ref> Horse taming and horseback culture evolved first in the southern [[steppe]] grasslands of Central Asia, perhaps approximately in modern [[Kazakhstan]].
+The mythological episode of the centaur Nessus carrying off Deianira, the bride of [[Heracles]], provided [[Giambologna]] (1529–1608), a Flemish sculptor whose career was spent in [[Italy]], a splendid opportunity to devise compositions with two forms in violent interaction. He made several versions of Nessus carrying off Deianira, represented by examples in the [[Louvre Museum|Louvre]], the Grünes Gewölbe, Dresden, the Frick Collection, [[New York City]], and the Huntington Library, San Marino, [[California]]. His followers, like [[Adriaen de Vries]] and Pietro Tacca, continued to make countless repetitions of the subject. When [[Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse|Carrier-Belleuse]] tackled the same play of forms in the nineteenth century, he titled it ''Abduction of Hippodameia.''
+[[Image:Ladycentaurs.JPG|left|250px|thumb|Two female centaurs crowning Aphrodite, a mosaic]]
-The Lapith tribe of Thessaly, who were the kinsmen of the Centaurs in myth, were described as the inventors of horse-back riding by Greek writers. The Thessalians tribes also claimed their horse breeds were descended from the centaurs.
-Of the various Classical Greek authors who mentioned centaurs, [[Pindar]] was the first who describes undoubtedly a combined monster. Previous authors ([[Homer]] etc) only use words such as Pheres (Beasts) that could also mean ordinary savage men riding ordinary horses. However, contemporaneous representations of hybrid centaurs can be found in archaic Greek art.
-The armchair anthropologist and writer [[Robert Graves]] speculated that the Centaurs of Greek myth were a dimly-remembered, pre-Hellenic fraternal earth cult who had the horse as a totem. A similar theory was incorporated into [[Mary Renault]]'s ''The Bull from the Sea.''
-The Greek word ''kentauros'' could be [[etymology|etymologized]] as ''ken - tauros'' = "piercing bull". Another possible etymology can be
-"bulls slayer". Some say that the Greeks took the constellation of [[Centaurus]], and also its name "piercing bull", from [[Mesopotamia]], where it symbolized the god [[Baal]] who represents rain and fertility, fighting with and ''piercing'' with his horns the demon [[Mot]] who represents the summer drought. (In Greece, Mot became the constellation of [[Lupus]].) Later in Greece, the constellation of Centaurus was reinterpreted as a man riding a horse, and linked to legends of Greece being invaded by tribes of horsemen from the north. The idea of a combined monster may have arisen as an attempt to fit the pictorial figure to the stars better.
-[[Alexander Hislop]] in his book [[The Two Babylons]] theorized that the word is derived from the Semitic [[Kohen]] and [[Torah|Tor]] via [[phonetics|phonetic shift]] the less prominent [[consonant]]s being lost over time ,with it developing into '''K'''h'''en''' '''Tor''' or ''Ken-Tor'', and being transliterated phonetically into [[Ionian]] as ''Kentaur''.
 ==Centaurs in fiction==
-Centaurs have appeared many times and in many places in modern times, in for example ''[[Artemis Fowl]]'', ''[[Avatar's Perdition: Black Sword Chronicle]]'', ''[[Fantasia (film)|Fantasia]]'', the ''[[Narnia]]'' books (as well as in the movie adaptation of its first novel, ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe]]''), ''[[Hercules: The Legendary Journeys]]'', ''[[The Golden Voyage of Sinbad]]'', ''[[Xena: Warrior Princess]]'', ''[[Harry Potter]]'', ''[[Clash of the Titans]]'' and the trilogy ''[[Titan (John Varley)|Titan]]'', ''[[Wizard (novel)|Wizard]]'', ''[[Demon (novel)|Demon]]'' and they also featured prominently in the ''[[Xanth]]'' series.  Additionally, the Centaur Inn was the hotel in [[Shakespeare]]'s [[The Comedy of Errors]].
+Centaurs have appeared many times and in many places in [[literature]] and popular fiction. One example is the Centaur Inn featured in [[Shakespeare]]'s ''The Comedy of Errors.'' Considered dangerous, even [[demon]]ic in the medieval period, the centaur experienced somewhat of a rebirth in more recent times. Centaurs are featured in [[C. S. Lewis]]' ''The Chronicles of Narnia,'' and numerous [[fantasy]] novels by a variety of twentieth-century authors. The centaur still plays the role of bringing together the [[animal]] and the [[human]], able to [[communication|talk]], [[thought|think]], and [[reason]] like human beings, while at the same time having the strength and physical abilities of a strong and swift animal. Centaurs in modern literature seem to have overcome their [[barbarian|barbarism]] of old, however, and, while still a dangerous enemy to humankind, are more often portrayed as supporters on the side of goodness.
-==Centaurs in games==
-*In the [[Mortal Kombat]] series of fighting games, [[Motaro]], one of the most infamous sub bosses of the first three games is a centaur.
-*Centaur is [[Monster in My Pocket]] #76.
-*In [[Age of Mythology]] the centaur is a classical age myth unit.
-*Although not as a flesh-and-blood Centaur, the [[Robot Master]] [[Centaur Man]] from [[Mega Man 6]] is modeled to look like a Centaur.
-*In the [[Shining Force series]], Centaurs are often portrayed as the knights of most kingdoms.
-*In fantasy novels the view of centaurs has sometimes been changed from barbarism to an honorable race that practices breeding and other actions relative to that of animals. This has also been done in some of the [[Magic: The Gathering]] cards that represent centaurs. In the real-time strategy PC game, ''Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos'' and the [[MMORPG]], ''World of Warcraft'', the Centaur are portrayed as a barbaric warrior race.
-*The University of Tennessee's Hodges Library hosts a permanent exhibit of a "Centaur from Volos", in its library. The exhibit, made by combining a study human skeleton with the skeleton of a Shetland pony is entitled "Do you believe in Centaurs?" and was meant to mislead students in order to make them more critically aware, according to the exhibitors.<ref>{{cite journal| url=http://notes.utk.edu/bio/unistudy.nsf/0/22d591ecc61a2cca85256efd00631d45?OpenDocument| volume=97| issue= 7 or 8| month= August 26| year= 2004| title=Library hails centaur’s 10th anniversary| first=Maggie| last=Anderson| accessdate=2006-09-21}}</ref>
-*Though the Greek word ''kentauros'' is said to be composed of a single [[morpheme]]&mdash; perhaps not a Greek one in its origin&mdash;, a suffix ''-taur'' has been invented by writers and game designers in the late 20th century for fantasy animal-human hybrids. For more information, see ''[[Centaur-like creatures]]''.
-*In the game [[Bully]], you can hear Fatty saying "I wish I was a centaur,".
-*In the game [[Disciples II: Dark Prophecy]], centaurs are Elven guardians and warriors.
+==Notes==
+<references/>
 ==References==
-<references/>
+* Costello, Peter. ''The Magic Zoo: The Natural History of Faulous Animals, Including Dragons, Mermaids, Unicorns and Centaurs.'' St. Martin's Press, 1979. ISBN 0312504217
+* Graves, Robert. ''Greek Gods and Heroes''. Laurel Leaf, 1965. ISBN 0440932211
+* Hamilton, Edith. ''Mythology.'' Back Bay Books, 1998. ISBN 0316341517
 ==External links==
+All links retrieved December 3, 2023.
-*[http://www.theoi.com/Georgikos/KentauroiThessalioi.html Theoi Project on Centaurs] in literature
+*[http://www.theoi.com/Georgikos/KentauroiThessalioi.html "Kentauroi Thessalioi"] Theoi Project.
-*[http://www.mythweb.com/encyc/entries/centaurs.html "MythWeb"] article on centaurs
 {{Credit1|Centaur|107315538|}}