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Ancient Rome’s Sea Beast Problem | Tales From the Bottle

Qxir | July 13, 2026



Byzantine historian Procopius documented many details from the empire’s numerous wars, but he also mentions something that modern historians can’t quite figure out.

“Porphyrios is mentioned in the writings of the 6th-century Byzantine historian Procopius, both in the History of the Wars (VII 29) and The Secret History. According to Procopius, Porphyrios measured 13.7 meters (45 ft) long and 4.6 meters (15 ft) wide. Whales were not well understood in antiquity or in the Middle Ages and were often seen simply as great monsters.
It is not possible to confidently identify which species Porphyrios belonged to. It might have been a sperm whale or an unusually large orca. Identification as a sperm whale is supported by its size, lengthy lifespan and temperament.[8] On the other hand, identification as an orca is supported by its geographical location, since true whales rarely venture into the waters which Porphyrios is known to have frequented.[6] If the name is a reference to the skin color, it could support either identification since both the black of orcas and dark brownish gray of sperm whales could be misinterpreted as dark purple.
The most accepted theory on how Porphyrios ended up in the waters of Constantinople is that when it was young, it swam through the Dardanelles while hunting and the strong currents of the strait prevented it from returning to the Aegean sea. It also could not enter the Black Sea, a sea that whales avoid due to the low levels of oxygen in its waters[clarification needed]. Consequently, Porphyrios was trapped in the Sea of Marmara. It is probable that it was the only whale in these waters and as a result had an abundance of prey to feed on. If it was an orca, this could explain its enormous size.
Porphyrios harassed ships in the waters of Constantinople for over fifty years, though not continuously since it at times disappeared for lengthy periods. It most frequently appeared in the Bosporus Strait. Porphyrios made no distinctions in regard to which ships it attacked, recorded as having attacked fishing vessels, merchant ships and warships. Many ships were sunk by Porphyrios, and its mere reputation terrified the crews of many more; ships often took detours to go around the waters where the whale most commonly swam. Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565), perplexed by the whale attacks and wishing to keep sea routes safe, made it a matter of great concern to capture Porphyrios, though he was unable to devise a means to do it.
When chasing dolphins one day, Porphyrios ran aground near the mouth of the Sakarya River and was beached. Though Porphyrios struggled and attempted to get out of the mud, it only managed to sink deeper into the mud, and become more stuck. Locals in the vicinity quickly organized themselves into a mob to kill the famous sea monster, rushing out with axes and ropes. They first attempted to kill Porphyrios using their axes, but their cuts into its flesh had little effect. Using ropes and wagons, Porphyrios was then hauled further up the beach and the whale was attacked and cut into pieces. Some of the attackers stored away their portion of the meat whereas others began to consume it on the spot.”

More on Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_DeS…

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Comments

This post currently has 47 comments.

  1. @Qxir

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

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  3. @Gojiro7

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    one thing I like about this, they clearly stated a time span of this things reign of terror like it has a life span and isn't treated like an immortal creature people think still exists after decades have gone by like Big Foot or the Loch Ness monster

  4. @angeloluna529

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    The romans probably exaggerated the orcas size since people throughout history love to make up stuff or possibly the cubits translated to modern measurements isnt exactly correct.

  6. @lorddrayvon1426

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    To be fair, this is really damn long time ago so not impossible Orcas were in the area at the time. Feeding habits having to change with environment could also explain the change in feeding

  10. @theprettypetard2524

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    if it doesn't match the description of any single specie it could simply be a very rare hybrid between two species that we never saw before. who knows maybe an orca got a bit frisky with one of it's cousin specie.

  11. @DragonJohn

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    Well, since cubits aren't exactly a static form of measurement and are based on proportions of the human body, maybe the person that measured porphyrios was really short

  17. @invidatauro8922

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    Just because animals aren’t known for being violent towards humans doesn’t mean that there can’t be individual members who are for a variety of reasons.

  21. @ogrelogre8429

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    One potential culprit no one seems to consider is the Humpback Whale. They not only fall perfectly in that 30 cubit range, but they also have a documented history of aggression towards whaling ships and boats. During the whaling years in Europe and America, they were considered some of the most dangerous whales to hunt, smashing boats and drowning the men on board and occasionally even ramming ships. It's interesting to note that this behavior stopped when we stopped hunting them, and Humpbacks are now considered gentle giants. (Unless you're an Orca.) But it wasn't always so. Perhaps it was a far astray Humpback with a grudge.

  22. @clueless4085

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    2:10 If I had never seen a whale before, I would absolutely regard it as a monster. The only reason they're not is because we have a pretty good understanding of them.
    Even understanding them, I personally would be quite happy to never, ever see one up close in their domain. Especially in a small boat.

  24. @thriddoctor

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    He was almost certainly a bull sperm whale. The 'purple' was an honorific rather than literal colour description. Big males have rammed and sunk ships. Mocha Dick was infamous for that in the early 19th century and inspired Moby Dick. The 45 foot legth is too small but this was probably another whale and not Purple Boy himself who may have simply died of old age.

  28. @chrisball3778

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    The main historical source for Porphyrios is Procopius' book 'Secret History'. A lot of historians who should have known better (especially 'Decline and Fall' author Edward Gibbon) have taken this book completely seriously over the years, but unfortunately for them, it's completely and utterly batshit insane. Among the many very strange claims the book makes are that the Emperor Justinian was a literal demon who's face was made from shapeshifting meat, and that said shapeshifting meat-demon murdered more people than died in the entire catastrophic plague that swept the Roman empire during his reign and probably more people than lived on the entirety of Planet Earth at the time. Secret History wasn't circulated during Procopius' lifetime and only came to light hundreds of years later when it was discovered in the Vatican Library.

    The whole book is really weird, full of wild contradictions and clearly hyperbolic, unlike all the rest of Procopius' work, which is mostly pretty plausible but spends a lot of time sucking up to the people who paid his bills. Historians have spent an awful lot of time arguing about why it was written ever since it turned up. Having read it myself, I think it's probably meant as a satire of the people Procopius worked for and secretly despised. He basically portrays everybody in the Byzantine court the exact opposite way they'd like to be remembered. Justinian's a demonic criminal. His devout wife Theodora is a literal stripper and prostitute. The heroic, manly general Belisarius is being constantly cucked, etc.

    A lot of it's very funny, but it's not really clear how much is intentional. It may also have been intended as propaganda to save Procopius' skin in the eventuality that Justinian was overthrown (something that happened to Byzantine Emperors almost constantly). Alternatively it may have been a kind of private diary for Procopius to vent his anger at his bosses, a fabrication designed to incriminate him, or the result of some kind of mental breakdown. The one thing it can't be considered as is a 100% reliable historical source.

    Nearly all recent translations describe Porphyrios as a whale though. 'Ketos' gives us the current scientific name for whales 'Cetaceans'. The fact that Porphyrios is identified with the royal colour purple (literally nobody else was legally allowed to wear purple) suggest to me that it might be part of an extended metaphor that nobody understands any more. Either it was another way of making fun of Justinian, or it was a reference to someone who was a rival to Justinian's throne who Procopius thought it would be funny to portray as a whale. Maybe they were really fat or something.

  29. @jacobdonnely2608

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    When you mentioned the reasons why you think it wasn't a sperm whale you say that they aren't known to be aggressive against ships and aren't often sighted in that area, I'm just pointing out that if you're talking about in the modern day and aren't drawing on ancient sources for that, then it's not really particularly relevant. A couple thousand years is enough time for animals to begin behaving different in response to certain things I think, and it's definitely long enough for places where they're often sighted to change as well.

  37. @Idiot-the-feeble

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    Back during Roman empire times I'd have to say whales and orcas were much more plentiful than today, who's not to say there wasn't the possibility they had been terrorized by a big ass orca or belligerent sperm whale?

  38. @djlclopez128

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    @Qxir Have you read about Jonah and the great fish in the Bible? Jonah did not want to listen to God's calling to call the city of Ninevah for repentance, so he ran! He fled to Joppa near Jerusalem and hopped on a ship to escape from God to Tarshish, a city nearly 2,500 miles across the Mediterranean Sea. On the way there a huge storm came and nearly destroyed the boat and the entire crew. Once the crew figured out Jonah was the reason the entire storm seemed to be attacking them, they threw him overboard. The Bible says that God prepared "a great fish" to swallow Jonah and he survived for 3 days and 3 nights in its stomach. (A reflection of Jesus being in the tomb for 3 days and 3 nights before being resurrected – by the way, the Bible says more than 500 people say Jesus for 40 days after His resurrection from the dead – and many of them witnessed His crucifixion and brutal murder – so it's no fairy tale! Actually, it's one of the most heavily documented accounts in history!)

    Anyway, I know that Porphyrias was a different time period, several centuries in difference, but that's very neat to think that it could be the same fish. I think a lot of old fish, like megalodon for example, could have lived for centuries, so it's neat to think about what Porphyrias actually was. Also, the Bible describes Leviathan, a giant sea creature that God created! Read the book of Job in the Bible, chapter 41. Very interesting!
    Also read John & Romans – John explains Who Jesus is, and Romans explains why we need Him!

  42. @whyjnot420

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    If you have ever seen a large whale up close, you know they are monsters. Just due to how big they are. They are seriously impressive creatures. In a time before their temperament was better understood, just imagine what people must have thought about them.

  43. @BoyKissBoy

    July 13, 2026 at 8:05 am

    I think it's a pretty safe bet that, for any story like this from before the era of the scientific method (at least), the answer is never any one thing.

    The beached thing certainly sounds like a whale. Some big or big-ish animal probably attacked a boat at some point or another. A bunch of ships were probably lost to rogue waves. Lots of ships were probably lost to completely normal storms.

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