The basilisk is the unofficial mascot of Basel. A figure from Greek mythology, it is half rooster and half snake. Legend had it that looking in its eyes would cause death. There are a few of them here (not live ones, obviously) that protect the Mittlere Brücke over the Rhine. You know that they're guards because their shields have the coat of arms of Basel-Stadt.
There were originally four basilisks here but they've been separated.
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