ArtofACOdyssey 8: Lion of Keos

And we’re back with another installment of #ArtofACOdyssey! Today we’re exploring the Lion of Keos.
 
Lion of Keos, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (Ubisoft 2018).  

 

If you’ve seen the actual Lion of Keos you probably think Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey has lost its mind. If you haven’t…here it is.

 

A very long, flat stone lion on the side of a hill. Photo via Wikimedia Commons, Phso2, CC-BY-SA 3.0/GNU.

This is a great example of an archaic-style lion and is in pretty good condition, although it does look more like the Lion of Gripsholm Castle* than an actual lion.

*The Lion of Gripsholm Castle resulted from King Frederick I of Sweden’s need to have a stuffed lion in 1734. He sent the remains back to the royal taxidermist, who had evidently never seen a lion before, but did his best. The lion is now on Facebook and on display in the castle.

Clearly neither of those are the lion we see in the game. What we are actually seeing is much closer to the 10m long Lion of Knidos. It was originally the crowning glory of a monumental tomb and is now on display at the British Museum. 

 

Lion of Knidos, 2nd c. BCE. British Museum. Photo: K. Jones.
 
 

It isn’t an exact match – the position of the tail and articulation of the mane are different, among other things – but the Assassin’s Creed lion isn’t nearly stylized enough to be based on any archaic examples.

So why the change? The Lion of Keos is famous enough that is would be weird NOT to have it on the island, but the original doesn’t exactly fit the aesthetic of the game. If I had to guess, I’d say that’s why Ubisoft subbed it out for the Knidian version.

 

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