History Channel Documentaries

Ancient Monster Hunters (2004x7)

Air date: Jul 01, 2004

Warlike amazons; the one-eyed man-eating Cyclops; the ferocious griffin, part bird, part lion. Were these creatures, celebrated by the ancient Greeks and immortalised by Homer something more than myth? The Greek myths are filled with magical tales of transformation, tragic episodes of human pettiness and jealousy, inspiring accounts of courage and valor, and legions of gods and heroes. But perhaps the most compelling stories are those of creatures like the one-eyed Cyclops and the ferocious half-lion, half-eagle known as the griffin. ANCIENT MONSTER HUNTERS follows a group of palaeontologists as they explore newly-translated evidence and examine remains that just may have inspired tales of these legendary monsters. Travel to the island of Samos, said to be the site of an Amazon battlefield, and analyse the gigantic bones that were found there. New data suggests the ancients actually searched for, excavated, measured and displayed these massive fossils. Is this the proof that the practice of palaeontology, long considered a modern science, actually began some 2,000 years before? Meet the monsters that just might link the Greek classical age with earth's prehistoric past and find out if these mythological beasts really have a place in the fossil record.