For centuries or more, tales of mythological creatures and mythical beasts have captured our minds. Stories of mythical animals, supernatural monsters, and other cool fantasy creatures continue to spread across the world through books, film, television, and many other media sources.

Sometimes, these mystical creatures are purely symbolic and offer us a closer look at a particular culture’s fears, desires, or values, while other folk tales about cute mythical creatures are based on human nature—or perhaps simply invented to keep disobedient children in line.