Beast
Skate
| Latin name: | Squatina |
| Other names: | Scuatina, Scutina, Sinatina, Squamatus, Squatina, Squatus |
| Category: | Fish |
A fish with a rough skin used to polish wood and ivory
General Attributes
The skate (squatina) is found in some medieval encyclopedias. It is a fish with sharp scales.
Allegory/Moral
The skate signifies the ungodly, whose cruelty tries the patience of the blessed, that they may be well polished and more gloriously placed in the house of the Lord. [Thomas of Cantimpré]
Uses Magical, Medical, Alchemical and Culinary
The skin of the skate is rough and can be used to polish wood and ivory.
Reality
In modern taxonomy, Squatina is a genus of shark (angelshark). Squatina also referred in early Latin to the skate, which angelsharks superficially resemble.
