Three-legged crow
The three-legged (or tripedal) crow is a creature found in various mythologies and arts of East Asia. It is believed by East Asian cultures to inhabit and represent the sun.
It has also been found figured on ancient coins from Lycia and Pamphylia.
The three-legged crow originated in China. Evidence of the earliest bird-sun motif or totemic articles excavated around 5000 BC from the lower Yangtze River delta area. This bird-sun totem heritage was observed in later Yangshao and Longshan Cultures. The Chinese have several versions of crow and crow-sun tales. But the most popular depiction and myth of the sun crow is that of the Yangwu or Jinwu, the “golden crow”.
In Chinese mythology and culture, the three-legged crow is called the sanzuwu (Chinese: 三足烏; pinyin: sānzúwū; Cantonese: sam1zuk1wu1; Shanghainese: sae tsoh u (lit. ¨three legged crow¨) and is present in many myths. It is also mentioned in the Shanhaijing. The earliest known depiction of a three-legged crow appears in Neolithic pottery of the Yangshao culture. The sanzuwu is also of the Twelve Medallions that is used in the decoration of formal imperial garments in ancient China. A silk painting from the Western Han excavated at the Mawangdui archaeological site also depicts a sanzuwu perched on a tree.
The most popular depiction and myth of a sanzuwu is that of a sun crow called the Yangwu (Chinese: 陽烏; pinyin: yángwū) or more commonly referred to as the Jīnwū (Chinese: 金烏; pinyin: jīnwū) or "golden crow". Even though it is described as a crow or raven, it is usually colored red instead of black.
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