The Philistine champion Goliath is well known to the press. Recently, the most widely reported Goliath-related story by far has been the discovery in the region where the Philistines once dwelt of a pottery sherd bearing the name “Goliath.”a Literally dozens of stories on this find appeared, almost all of which were appropriately restrained in their claims as to what this inscription could—or could not—prove. As it turns out, no such restraint was exhibited by the headline writers, who produced such winning and clever phrases as “Goliath’s Still a Bit Shattered,” “Giant Israeli Find” and “Goliath Find Just Slays Archaeologist.”
Thank goodness, none of this means that we can’t still have a little fun with all sorts of big creatures named Goliath. For example, there are the fish known as Goliath grouper, each weighing 200 to 300 pounds, off the coast of Tampa Bay, Florida. A protected species, these dwellers of the not-so-deep are described as “huge, lethargic creatures that were easy to catch, easy to spear and good to eat.” “Huge, lethargic, easy to catch” could also describe the Goliath of David’s day, but good taste requires that I not speculate on whether the Philistine tasted good.
Then there is the deer named Goliath, who “was about 2 years old, weighed 260 pounds and had 28 points, or antler tips,” when he was abducted from a ranch 60 miles north of Pittsburgh in late 1999. Four years later, DNA testing proved that a somewhat larger animal living 50 miles away, then called Hercules, was in fact the long-lost Goliath. So, happily for the deer, we do not know if he, like Goliath grouper, is good to eat, nor do we know if the deer answers to “Goliath,” “Hercules,” neither or both.
My favorite Goliath, terrestrial and aquatic alike, is Goliath, the World’s Tallest Horse. A “12-year-old Percheron [he] stands more than 19 hands high, or 6 feet, 5 inches at the withers. He weighs more than 2,400 pounds.” His diet—“Goliath eats 18 pounds of Pilgrim’s Pride grain, 40 pounds of Coastal Bermuda hay and drinks 20 gallons of water daily”—may rival that of his Biblical namesake, but his traveling schedule—350 appearances nationwide each year—seems more like Samson’s during his prime (that is, during his prime on the Philistine show circuit).
As reported by the press, Goliath is a fairly common name in several areas of culture. There have been stories on Donatello’s head of Goliath, Verrochio’s head of Goliath, Caravaggio’s head of Goliath (all severed, by the way), along with Starving Goliath, a band from Columbus, Ohio, whose high school members, taken all together, probably weigh less than Philistine Goliath, Deer Goliath or Horse Goliath. We also hear of two Goliath roller coasters: One, at Montreal’s La Ronde, measures more than 53 meters, or 175 feet, in height, and the other, at Six Flags Over Georgia, is “a steel hypercoaster that will stand 200 feet tall, have an initial drop of 170 feet and a second drop of 175 feet. Speeds will reach almost 70 mph.” Don’t look for this Goliath to be replicated at any other theme parks; like its Biblical namesake, it is one of a kind.
The Philistine champion Goliath is well known to the press. Recently, the most widely reported Goliath-related story by far has been the discovery in the region where the Philistines once dwelt of a pottery sherd bearing the name “Goliath.”a Literally dozens of stories on this find appeared, almost all of which were appropriately restrained in their claims as to what this inscription could—or could not—prove. As it turns out, no such restraint was exhibited by the headline writers, who produced such winning and clever phrases as “Goliath’s Still a Bit Shattered,” “Giant Israeli Find” and “Goliath Find Just Slays […]
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