CENTAUR
Greek Mythology
Roman Mythology
This is the name of a class of hybrid beings in the classical mythology of Greece and Rome whose description was developed in later travelers' tales and bestiaries of medieval Europe. CENTAURS, also spelled KENTAURE or KENTAUROS, are described as having the body and hind quarters of a horse but the head and torso of a man. These beings were variously said to have been engendered from the union of the queen of the gods HERA/JUNO with IXION or from that of CENTAURUS (son of APOLLO) and the STIBIA (the Mares of Magnetism). They were also said to inhabit the mountains at Erymanthus in Thessaly or the countryside of Clyon. For the most part the CENTAURS were kind, hospitable, sporting, generous, and wise. However, they had some faults that proved their downfall on many an occasion, such as being bawdy and quick to fight, and having no tolerance for alcohol, which made them aggressively drunk.
Source: Giants, Monsters, and Dragons: An Encyclopedia of Folklore, Legend, and Myth