The Jackalope is an American folkloric creature and cryptid — a mythical horned rabbit, a jackrabbit with the antlers of an antelope or deer, a beloved and humorous creature of the folklore of the American West, famous from the taxidermy novelties and tall tales of the western United States. The horned rabbit of the American West, the antlered jackrabbit of folklore and tall tale, the Jackalope is one of the most beloved and humorous of the American folkloric cryptids, the horned hare of the West.
The Horned Rabbit
The Jackalope is a mythical horned rabbit — a jackrabbit (the large hare of the American West) with the antlers of an antelope or deer growing from its head, the antlered hare, the horned rabbit. The name “Jackalope” is a portmanteau of “jackrabbit” and “antelope,” the antlered jackrabbit. It is a creature of the folklore of the American West — the tall tales, folklore, and humorous legends of the western United States (especially Wyoming, which claims the Jackalope as its own and has declared it the official state mythical creature), where the Jackalope is a beloved and humorous figure of folklore and tall tale. As the horned rabbit, the antlered jackrabbit of the folklore of the American West, the Jackalope is the beloved horned hare of the West.
The Taxidermy and the Tall Tales
The Jackalope became famous through taxidermy novelties and tall tales. The taxidermy Jackalope — a mounted creation combining a jackrabbit’s body and head with deer or antelope antlers, created by taxidermists as a humorous novelty — became a famous and popular item, the “stuffed Jackalope” displayed in bars, shops, and homes across the American West and beyond, a beloved humorous novelty. The Jackalope is traditionally credited to the taxidermists Douglas Herrick and his brother of Douglas, Wyoming, who in the 1930s created and popularised the mounted Jackalope, sparking the popular craze for the taxidermy horned rabbit. The Jackalope is also the subject of humorous tall tales — the legends and tall tales of the Jackalope, said to be a fierce and elusive creature, to be able to mimic human voices, to be caught only by particular means, and to figure in the humorous tall tales and legends of the West. As the subject of the famous taxidermy novelties and tall tales, the mounted horned rabbit and the figure of western tall tale, the Jackalope is the beloved humorous folkloric creature of the West.
The Beloved Folkloric Creature
The Jackalope is one of the most beloved and humorous of the American folkloric creatures and cryptids — a creature of folklore, tall tale, and taxidermy novelty, beloved across the American West and beyond, a famous figure of American folklore and humour. It draws, in part, on older traditions and on the real phenomenon of horned rabbits — for there is a real phenomenon, the Shope papillomavirus, which causes horn-like growths (keratinous tumours) to grow on the heads and bodies of infected rabbits, producing real “horned rabbits” that may have inspired or contributed to the legend of the horned rabbit (and the horned rabbit appears in older European and folkloric traditions as well). The Jackalope is a beloved and humorous creature, a famous figure of American folklore and the folklore of the West, the horned rabbit of tall tale and taxidermy. Unlike the fearsome cryptids, the Jackalope is a humorous and beloved figure, a creature of folklore, fun, and tall tale rather than terror. As the beloved folkloric creature, the humorous horned rabbit of the American West and a famous figure of American folklore, the Jackalope is the cherished antlered hare of the West. As the horned rabbit of the American West — the Jackalope, the antlered jackrabbit of folklore, tall tale, and taxidermy — it stands as one of the most beloved and humorous of the American folkloric cryptids.
Legacy
The Jackalope endures as one of the most beloved and humorous of the American folkloric creatures and cryptids, the mythical horned rabbit — the jackrabbit with the antlers of an antelope — of the folklore of the American West, famous from the taxidermy novelties and tall tales of the western United States, a beloved figure of American folklore and humour and the official mythical creature of Wyoming. As the horned rabbit of the American West — the Jackalope, the antlered jackrabbit of folklore, tall tale, and taxidermy, the beloved and humorous creature of the West — the Jackalope stands as one of the most beloved and cherished of the American folkloric cryptids, the horned hare of the West, the humorous antlered rabbit of folklore and tall tale.
