The Basiliskenhaus is situated at the Schönlaterngasse 7. The mural at this house shows a myth about a baker servant who defeated a basilisk. The fabulous creature lived in the well of the building.
As looking into the eyes of a basilisk was supposed to be fatal, the young servant attacked the creature by facing it with a mirror. So, the basilisk destroyed itself. Well, the basilisk at the mural doesn’t look that dangerous, does it?
Reading the legend in an old book, I was surprised that the story goes differently. Confronting the basilisk with a mirror was an option, but nobody dared. Finally, the brave people defeated the creature by throwing stones into the well.
By the way, a possible explanation of the legend sounds pretty basic. There was no smelly basilisk. Instead, the people of Vienna were confronted with toxic gas rising from the bottom of the well.
Sources / More info
- Schönlaterngasse (Wikipedia)
- Basilisk (Wikpedia)