August 2018

Fig. 2. Sea serpent dragon “head” of Ningpo, China. (From “Marine snake head from China”, 1905. The Pacific Commercial Advertiser. Used according to § 51 Urheberrechtsgesetz).

The sea serpent dragon’s head of Ningpo, 1905

n 1905 the head of a supposed “sea serpent” was brought to Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. William Herbert Melton Ayres originally bought it from a fisherman of Ningpo, China, and related it to the legendary dragons of China. Speculations about its true nature so far ranged from dragon or descendant of a prehistoric marine reptile to toothed whale. Its history will be examined from newspaper-articles, while its identity will be explained from a published photography for the first time since 1905.

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The “sea monster” with young Don Best (age 6-8) in the background at Rockaway Beach (Best, 2017. Courtesy of Don Best Photography).

Sea monster beached at Rockaway, 1951

Rockaway Beach is a city in Tillamook County in the West coast state of Oregon, USA. In July 1951 a “sea monster” washed up here on the shore of the Pacific Ocean, just opposite to Twin Rock. Seemingly only one newspaper-article was published in local press, which provided no positive identification of the creature. The history of this “overlooked” sea monster will be examined from this source as well as from the remembrance of family accounts of Mr William Browne and Mr Don R. Best. The identity of the creature will be explained from a private photography of Mr Best, published online in December 2017.

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