From powerful fire-breathing dragons and fierce griffins, to part-human sphinxes and mermaids with mesmerising beauty, mythical creatures and beasts have long captivated the minds of human beings, ancient and modern.
Hongkongers now have the opportunity to explore these intriguing, man-constructed creatures and their fascinating stories at an exhibition entitled 'Fantastic Creatures from the British Museum'.
Running until April 11 at the Hong Kong Museum of Art in Tsim Sha Tsui, the event features some 170 artefacts spanning several centuries, from the Paleolithic Age to the present day and across different cultures and civilisations.
Jointly organised by the Hong Kong Museum of Art and the British Museum in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the opening of the former, the exhibition is structured into nine sections, each centred on a type of fantastic creature. It delves into how such creatures give form and expression to basic human hopes and fears, such as what lies beyond the visible horizon, how we make sense of our world, our relationship with the animal kingdom, the nature of good and evil, and what it means to be human.
A fantastic creature is often larger than life, or has multiple heads or other body parts. It may combine elements of different creatures, either different animals or animal and man. Often it also has magical properties.
British Museum director Neil MacGregor says the exhibition explores common themes that recur in different civilisations, and looks at how human needs are served by the invention of mythical creatures and beasts.