Cryptomundo
for Bigfoot, Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents and More

From The Fortean Times 274, May 2011
By Ulrich Magin

Lake Monsters of Italy and Germany

The serpentine denizens of European waters

In November 1946, a monster appeared suddenly in Italy’s Lake Como, making headlines first in the regional press, then in Italy, Europe, and even the United States:

Como’s “rose-coloured” sea monster developed “gleaming red eyes and green scales”’ today and intrepid hunting parties patrolled the eastern shore determined to do him in with pitchforks and shotguns the next time he appears.

Three fishermen said they spotted the marine mammoth Wednesday. They said he had “gleaming eyes, green scales and black stripes”. “We were terror-stricken,” said two of the fishermen, with the third nodding an anxious assent. The exact size of the monster still is unsettled. Some say he’s about 100ft long. Others say he’s only 12ft long. All agree, however, that Lake Como is no longer a place for fishermen. The firemen have taken over.

Firemen… patrol the lake shore day and night, armed with weapons ranging from shotguns to pitchforks. The slightest ripple on the blue water attracts their attention… Dredging barges cruise along the eastern lake shore. One fisherman claimed he wounded the colourful monster with a rifle shot. Barge operators said that might help them to capture the beast.

Whether this new giant of the deep is the same one an Italian journalist said he sighted six years ago has not yet been established. The Italian journalist didn’t say anything about “black spots or great horns” on the head of the monster he saw. Villagers can’t remember whether the Italian journalist’s monster had green or red scales.

“We were going to Varenna in a rowboat,” one of the eyewitnesses said, “when we saw on our left a strange, foaming wake, my companion remarked how strange it was – because the lake is always so calm. We turned and saw an enormous, frightful head.

“The monster opened its mouth and we could see big eyes and black spots or bumps on its head. It swall­owed some water, plunged and re-emerged with the fins on its body showing. We started to row away fast – and when we looked back it was gone.”“Rose-Coloured Sea Monster Terrorizes Italy Fishermen”
Reading Eagle, 22 Nov 1946, p35

To read the article in its entirety, including whether this reported incident has a hoax or not, go to Lake Monsters of Italy and Germany on the The Fortean Times website.

This entry was posted on Friday, May 20th, 2011 at 6:00 am and is filed under Bigfoot Report, Cryptotourism, Cryptozoologists, Cryptozoology, Eyewitness Accounts, Folklore, Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents. You can follow responses via our RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.