The celebrity

The cuelebre or the culebre is a creature of the legend mythology of the Celtic regions of Asturias, Galician and Cantabria.

The Cuélebre

The cuélebre is generally described in the form of a dragon or a large winged serpent, with a scaly body having a green and red color that is hard as iron.

It is said that one of its main functions is to guard the treasures, since in Asturias there are numerous references to these treasures consisting of gold coins generally of great value.

The celebre usually hides in a cave, in a wood or in a fountain.

Unfortunately the celebre has a habit of being disturbed by humans often living near its hiding place.

Except that the favorite food of the celebre is dead human beings, but also sometimes living humans for those who have the audacity to approach too close to their cabins.

It is said that their weak points are the throat because the rest of the body is filled with hard scales which make them practically invulnerable.

Nowadays there are several stories about the celebre.

The first would be a legend telling that a beautiful young girl refuses to hear the warnings of her family, that she often goes to admire her reflection on the surface of a lake to comb her hair.

Unfortunately a powerful water nymph from the lake observes her and thinks that the young girl is neglecting her daily tasks to waste her time in this activity.

Then the nymph decides to cast a spell on her where the young girl becomes enormous, her hair is replaced by crests, her skin is replaced by scales and wings grow on her.

But to regain her original appearance, she will have to meet a knight who will be brave, who will not be afraid of her and who will have such a pure heart to find her beautiful.

The second story is those of the farmers who managed to fool him or the monks tired of feeding him to prevent him from taking the bodies from the convents decided to give him a loaf of bread filled with pins which killed him.

Another story tells that in the 1960s the celebre was seen in the town of Felechosa where a rancher swore with his own eyes that he had seen this creature and that he was stalking it.

Others say they tripped over its tail or smelled its breath through the brush, which caused hysteria in the town and forced the Civil Guard to carry out a sweep of the area, particularly in the vicinity of the Otero cave.

It is also said that when the celebre becomes old and its time is near, the creature sinks to the bottom of the sea with its treasures to rest.