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Giant Water Python In India (Poubi Lai)

lordmongrove

Justified & Ancient
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newkerala.com/news/2015/fullnews-92043.html
Link is dead. The MIA webpage can be retrieved from the Wayback Machine:
https://web.archive.org/web/20150811020754/http://www.newkerala.com/news/2015/fullnews-92043.html

Delhi exhibition showcases Manipur's mythical giant snake Poubi Lai

If the Chinese people believe in the myth of the dragon, the Scots in the Loch Ness monster and the Hindus in the Naga serpent, then the Meitei people of the northeast Indian state of Manipur have their own myth of a giant snake.

In a one of its kind one-piece show, the National Museum here, in collaboration with the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS), has mounted an exhibition showcasing a sculpture of Manipur's mythical 21-foot giant python Poubi Lai.

The exhibition, which started on Tuesday evening in Exhibition Hall 2 of the National Museum, will run till August 31.

According to Meitei mythology, Poubi Lai is a huge python that lives under Manipur's famous tourist attraction, the Loktak lake. ...

New exhibition on giant lake python.
 
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21 feet is a big one. Only 2 specimens have ever made it to 30 feet or more. Although with reports out of the Congo they may possibly exceed the ~33 foot mark which is the current record killed in the 1920's.
 
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Here's a photo of the Poubi Lai sculpture mentioned above ...

21ndjai-python.+22DE_SCULPTUREDEL.j.jpg

Poubi Lai is a mythical form of a python that is believed to inhabit the Loktak Lake in Manipur. It is regarded as one of the greatest life forms by the Meitei people of Manipur and is an important part of the culture and beliefs of the people. There are many lores that surround the myth that makes for fascinating reading about the culture of the Northeast region.

SOURCE (With More Info on the sculptor):
https://www.thehindu.com/news/citie...nt-python-called-poubi-lai/article7449693.ece
 
Interesting a python with a the head from the dear family (cervids).

According to the Wikipedia article the Poubi Lai has sometimes been characterized as a dragon rather than a snake.

The horns, ears and Stegosaurus-style dorsal plates are features sometimes seen on old depictions of dragons and sea serpents.
 
According to the Wikipedia article the Poubi Lai has sometimes been characterized as a dragon rather than a snake.

The horns, ears and Stegosaurus-style dorsal plates are features sometimes seen on old depictions of dragons and sea serpents.
Enola, I can see the stegosaurus similar type plating towards the front of the creature. What I find interesting is the mix of mammalian and reptilian features.
 
Enola, I can see the stegosaurus similar type plating towards the front of the creature. What I find interesting is the mix of mammalian and reptilian features.

Yep ... The long rounded snout and the distinct ears are definitely mammal-like. To my eye it's the horns that really make me think "mammal." There are multiple horned reptiles, including horned snakes, but I don't recall ever seeing a reptile horn that branches like antlers.
 
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