Birds in Legends, Mythology and Religion - I

Country or Religion	Mythological creature	Role and Myth
CHINESE MYTHOLOGY	Fenghuang	Mythological birds that reign over all other birds.	A Fenghuang on the roof of Longshan Temple in Taipei (Source : Wikipedia)
	Zhu Què (Vermilion Bird)	A mythological spirit creature of the Chinese constellations.	The Vermilion Bird on the gates of a Han Dynasty mausoleum complex (Source : Wikipedia)
	*Xiānhè (Red-crowned Cranes Grus japonensis)*	In Chinese mythology cranes are generally symbolically connected with the idea of immortality.	Pine, Plum and Cranes, 1759 AD, by Shen Quan (1682–1760). Hanging scroll, ink and colour on silk. The Palace Museum, Beijing. (Source : Wikipedia)
GREEK MYTHOLOGY	Griffin	A legendary creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion.	Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria Source : http://www.theoi.com/Gallery/K5.7.html
	Phoenix	A mythical sacred firebird. It is a long-lived bird that is cyclically regenerated or reborn. Associated with the sun, a phoenix obtains new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor.	A phoenix depicted in a book of mythological creatures by F.J. Bertuch(1747-1822) (Source : Wikipedia)
	Icarus	Son of Daedalus who dared to fly too near the sun on wings of feathers and wax.	Icarus Source: http://www.mythweb.com/encyc/gallery/icarus_c.html