Coulobre Of Fontaine de Vaucluse

 


The coulobre of Fontaine de Vaucluse was a hideous salamander like dragon who lived in the town she was named after. She made her home in a mountain spring just outside of town, which formed a large pool by a cliff side and fed the Sorgue River. The coulobre was so horrible looking that her dragon mates would immediately leaver her. All of her children became small black salamanders rather than dragons.


The coulobre was a menace to the land and people around her, devouring humans and live stock alike. Saint Véran took up the calling to kill the dragon. He watched the coulobre for many days to learn her behaviours. Then when she emerged from the pool one night he ambushed the coulobre and made the sign of the cross, injuring and subduing the beast. She few away into the Alps in fear of the saint. The coulobre then died high in the mountains. A village named Saint Véran was built on the location where the coulobre died.


For several centuries people thought the coulobre was gone for good. However in the 15th century scholar and poet, Petrarch claimed to have an encounter with the coulobre. He was fishing on the shore of the Sorgue river along side his lover Laure when the dragon attacked him. He slayed the beast with his sword, but some of her poisoned blood splashed on Laure, killing her (although the real cause of her death was the black plague). Petrarch was devastated by her loss and never emotionally recovered.


There is another dragon called the coloubre in Dordogne which this one shouldn’t be confused with. As well there’s a dragon called the cuélebre in Cantabria that also has a similar name. The name comes from the Latin word for grass snake, which is why so many dragons have a similar name. Although grass snakes aren’t very intimidating.



Sources


https://provence-alpes-cotedazur.com/en/things-to-do/culture-and-heritage/traditions/coulobre/

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coulobre

https://www.grandsudinsolite.fr/1013--the-legend-of-la-coulobre.html

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