 National Museum of Scotland's Stronsay Monster samples Photograph I took of the Stronsay Monster vertebrae and dermatotrichia held at the National Museum of Scotland. These can only be viewed by prior arrangement and are currently reported as being misplaced after a refurbishment of the Museum. |
 Annotated photo of the National Museum of Scotland's items Annotated photo of the National Museum of Scotland's remains of the Stronsay Monster. |
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 Cover of the box the National Library of Scotland samples are inside This is the cover of the small box the 'bristle' of the Stronsay Monster and an unknown sample of bone [likely battlefield relic] are stored within at the National Library of Scotland |
 National Library of Scotland's John Murray Archive item, sample of 'bristle' from the Stronsay Monster and a fragment of bone [likely to be battlefield relic] which was gived to Lord Byron. |
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 Sketch of Stronsay Monster This sketch of the Stronsay Monster is held in the collection of the Orkney Museum. It was shared with me prior to my first lecture on the creature. It was made by Mr. Petrie on behalf of the Edinburgh Wernerian Society long after the creature had been destroyed by the action of the waves and contains a number of discrepancies which the witnesses detailed in their testimony |
 Rothiesholm where the Stronsay Monster washed ashore The beach where the Stronsay Monster washed ashore. It was originally draped over the backbar, the stone bar visible off the beach in the photo. |
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 Book print demonstrating how male basking sharks have previously been mistaken for fish with legs - the sexual organs (claspers) make the third pair of 'limbs'. |
 How basking sharks decay The pseudo-plesiosaur appearance that decayed basking sharks can take on once severely decayed and lacking their gill apparatus |
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 Finn whale A rarely seen animal. This Finn Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) washed up in Orkney on Hoy. As it is has a bone skeleton a creature like this is not a possible candidate. It is the second largest creature in the world. |
 Walrus Another rare sighting for Orkney. This walrus visited in 2013. This also has a bone skeleton so aside from being far too short, nothing like that could be a candidate for the Stronsay Monster. |
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 Oarfish This oarfish washed up dead in Orkney in 2007. I was fortunate enough to get to examine the creature at the Orkney Marine-Life Aquarium. Such fish can grow to great lengths but as they have a bony skeleton they could not be a match for the Stronsay Monster and neither could any other fish species with bones. They are interesting though, two more have been found this year in Orkney (2014, one live and one dead. |
 Drawings of missing remains of the Stronsay Monster The now lost parts of the Stronsay Monster drawn in the Wernerian Society notes. See the entire publication at my flickr stream by clicking this image. |
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