The hippocampus is regarded as the king of the fish. It is a mythical creature found in Phoenician, Etruscan, Pictish, Roman, and Greek mythologies, although its name is Greek in origin. The front of the beast's body is horse-like, but with webbed feet instead of front hooves. The graceful animal's torso gradually transitions into a flexible snake tail, curled in a double loop with its tail steeply curved upward. Hippocampi pulled the chariot of Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. Costal inhabitants considered the hippocampus an unrivalled racehorse for rapid movement across the water.

The horse symbolises intelligence, wisdom, nobility, light, dynamic power, agility, quick thinking, and the flow of time. It is a symbol of fertility, courage and strong power. This image is also an ancient symbol of the cyclic development of the world of phenomena— the horses which bring Neptune with his trident out of the sea’s abyss embody the cosmic forces of primordial chaos.