The Grootslang or Grote Slang (

Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans g ...

and

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

for "big snake") is a

legendary creature A legendary creature (also mythical or mythological creature) is a type of fictional entity, typically a hybrid, that has not been proven and that is described in folklore (including myths and legends), but may be featured in historical accou ...

that is reputed to dwell in a deep cave in the

Richtersveld The Richtersveld is a desert landscape characterised by rugged kloofs and high mountains, situated in the north-western corner of South Africa’s Northern Cape province. It is full of changing scenery from flat, sandy, coastal plains, to cragg ...

, South Africa.

Legend

The Grootslang is said to be a huge

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae ...

-sized serpent that dwells in a cave known as the "Wonder Hole" or the "Bottomless Pit". Supposedly, the cave connects to the sea away. According to local legend, the cave is filled with

diamonds Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, ...

. The cave is sometimes described as instead connecting to the

Orange River The Orange River (from Afrikaans/ Dutch: ''Oranjerivier'') is a river in Southern Africa. It is the longest river in South Africa. With a total length of , the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibia to the nort ...

by a natural pipe through which the diamonds are gradually funneled into the current. A large pool beneath the King George Cataract at Aughrabies Falls is also said to be a lair of the Grootslang and a source of diamonds. Here, the creature is reputed to be coiled around a great hoard of gold and gems In ''The Glamour of Prospecting'', the South African gold prospector F. C. Cornell describes the "Groot Slang" as a large snake said to live within a large rock in the middle of the Orange River, and to take cattle from the river's banks. Belief in this creature is described as ubiquitous among the local

Khoekhoe Khoekhoen (singular Khoekhoe) (or Khoikhoi in the former orthography; formerly also '' Hottentots''"Hottentot, n. and adj." ''OED Online'', Oxford University Press, March 2018, www.oed.com/view/Entry/88829. Accessed 13 May 2018. Citing G. S. ...

(described by Cornell as "Richtersfeld Hottentots") and some white settlers, who greatly fear the serpent. In appearance, the serpent is said to be forty to fifty feet in length, and to leave a track three feet wide. Some legends describe it as having diamonds in its eye sockets. According to a version of the story reported among the

Bushmen The San peoples (also Saan), or Bushmen, are members of various Khoe, Tuu, or Kxʼa-speaking indigenous hunter-gatherer cultures that are the first cultures of Southern Africa, and whose territories span Botswana, Namibia, Angola, Zambia ...

, the Grootslang is older than the world and will protect its treasure for eternity. Another form of the myth states that the Grootslang is a spirit tasked with guarding its cavern from treasure seekers, and that its presence is marked by an overpowering "sense of evil". While searching for treasure in the

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

in 1917, the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

businessman Peter Grayson disappeared after members of his party were attacked and injured by lions, prompting rumors that the Grootslang had killed him. According to legend, only one person entered the Wonder Hole and returned. This was a prospector who used a cable winch to descend into the cave until he reached a ledge. There, he saw tunnels leading further in and smelled a strong scent of sulfur, but dropped his electric torch when bats flew towards him and had to be pulled back up. He did not descend into the cave again.

Origin

In ''Where Men Still Dream'', the South African journalist and author Lawrence G. Green speculates that the legend of the Grootslang originated from sightings of native pythons, which can reach twenty-five feet in length. Additional details of the myth, such as its size in excess of real pythons and diamonds in the creature's eye sockets, are dismissed by Green as narrative exaggerations.

In popular culture

* A Grootslang was featured in ''

The Secret Saturdays ''The Secret Saturdays'' is an American animated television series created by Canadian cartoonist Jay Stephens for Cartoon Network. It debuted on October 3, 2008 in the United States. The series follows the adventures of the Saturdays, a family ...

'' episode "Something in the Water". It is depicted as a four-tusked green-skinned elephant with ram-like horns and a spiked snake-like tail. The Saturdays had to relocate a Grootslang away from settlements by baiting it with a large piece of pork. * A Grootslang was featured in the '' Lumberjanes'' vol. 3 as a creature creating a massive snow storm threatening the camp. * In '' Kingdom Rush: Origins'', in the stage The Crystal Lake, a Grootslang appears in the crystal river. It uses its breath to crystalize towers.

References

{{reflist Legendary serpents South African legendary creatures