Kraken

Pen and wash drawing by malacologist Pierre Dénys de Montfort, 1801, from the descriptions of French sailors reportedly attacked by such a creature off the coast of Angola.

A kraken is an imaginary sea monster of huge size, said to have dwelt off the coasts of Norway, Greenland, and Iceland. The legend may actually have originated from sightings of real giant squid. They are estimated to grow to 13–15 m (40–50 ft) in length, including the tentacles.

The mysterious sea monster started to be talked about in literary works as far back as 1180, according to paleontologist Rodrigo Brincalepe Salvador.