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The roc was a giant bird reported not only in The Thousand and One Arabian Nights, but in stories of the travels of Marco Polo. It was a huge bird, seen on islands off the eastern coast of Africa. According to the legendary Sinbad, the roc's egg measured 50 paces in circumference. It came to represent strength and purity, and was known for its devotion to its young.

"I thought a cloud had come over the sun, even though it was summer. While I was wondering about this, I lifted my head to look up at the sky, and suddenly I saw that the cloud was none other than an enormous bird of gigantic girth and wide wings."

...from The Second Voyage of Sinbad