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+ Animals in the Bible 1
Horned Asp
The Adder is spoken of five times in the Bible, and the word is used as the translation of no less than four distinct Hebrew words. In Gen. 49:17 the Adder is spoken of as hiding in the way and biting the horse's heels so that the rider is overthrown. The Hebrew term in this passage (elsewhere rendered ' cockatrice ') is probably the same word as the modern Arabic name for the Horned Sand Snake or Cerastes haselquistii. It is the habit of this extremely venomous viper to lurk in the ruts of wheels or the depression of a footprint by the roadside, and to bite the legs of unwary passers-by, or of horses or cattle. Horses, aware of its nature, are said to be in terror of the Cerastes, and cannot be induced to proceed, once they have detected the concealed reptile, for its bite is most deadly. It derives its name of ' horned ' from the presence of two protuberances, one over each eye. It is of a grayish tint, about a foot long, and very active. The asp of Cleopatra, ' the pretty worm of Nilus,' has been identified with this animal, which is to be seen figured on ancient Egyptian monuments. [Adder Horned Asp ]