Giant serpents reported to exist in Scandinavia. In 1885, Swedish scientist/folklorist Gunnar Olof Hylten-Cavallius published some 50 accounts of sightings of the lindorm, which he described as being 3 to 6 meters (10 to 20 feet) in length. These reports gave verification to the earlier discussion of lindorms in The Natural History of Norway by Erik Pontoppidan (1698-1764), the Bishop of Bergen, in the middle of the 18th century. Pontoppidan had related the belief that the lindorms were youthful sea serpents that leave the land for life in the sea when they grow to the point that they can no longer move easily around the rocks.
According to Hylten-Cavallius’s summary, the lindorm is a black snake with a yellow underside, whose body is as thick as a man’s thigh. Its neck shows a growth of hair similar to a horse’s mane, and it possesses a forked tongue and a mouth full of teeth. In general, it was reported to have a foul temper and could raise itself up and attack any prey. It was generally reported in unpopulated areas. Encounters tended to have a traumatic effect on the people involved.