Page 278 - A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols BIG Book

A-Z 271
Owl

xiao

For the ancient Egyptians the owl was the bird of the dead, as it was in ancient India; for
the Greeks it was a symbol of wisdom, while the Romans eyed it askance as a bird of ill-
omen. The Chinese agree with the Romans; the appearance of an owl heralds disaster,
and in this the bird is the opposite of the phoenix, the harbinger of happiness
and fortune.
Its bad name appears to rest mainly on the belief that young owls could not learn to fly
until they had picked out the eyes of their mother – not something likely to appeal to
people who value filial piety as highly as the Chinese do!
Many authorities identify the owl with the ‘demon chariot’, a being which originally
had ten heads, till a dog bit off one of them. The monster has been bleeding ever since,
and children’s clothes should not be left out in the sun to dry, as it may cast an evil spell
on them.

Embroidered handbag with owl (upper right)

Big staring eyes are typical of demons, and the owl is certainly gifted in this respect.
But in ancient China, the owl cannot have been viewed with dislike alone, as many
bronze vessels are extant which are owl-shaped, and roof-finials often took the form of
sculptured owls which were supposed to shelter the inmates from ‘thunder and fire’.