2: 5. The Raven: Mythology, Intelligence, and Return AUTHOR: Stephen Moss BOOK TITLE: 10 Birds That Changed the World This excerpt examines the large, highly intelligent Raven (a crow on steroids). Its deep mythology stretches from the earliest civilizations
The John Batchelor Show
John Batchelor
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🗓️ 13 October 2025
⏱️ 10 minutes
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Summary
5. The Raven: Mythology, Intelligence, and Return
BOOK TITLE: 10 Birds That Changed the World
This excerpt examines the large, highly intelligent Raven (a crow on steroids). Its deep mythology stretches from the earliest civilizations, including Norse legend, where Odin's ravens (Huginn and Muninn) flew around the world as his eyes and ears. The myth states that if the ravens leave the Tower of London, the kingdom will fall. Historically regarded as harbingers of doom and persecuted as scavengers, ravens are currently making a successful, adaptable comeback in Britain.
1849
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| 0:31.4 | This is CBS Eye on the World with John Batchelor. Here's John Bachelor. |
| 0:40.1 | Continuing with the author and producer, Stephen Moss, his new book is Ten Birds that Change the World. And now we turn to a raven. I have never seen a raven. I have crows in my life, and I respect them. A raven is |
| 0:47.0 | much bigger. Also, same cleverness, same intelligence, and the legends. Stephen, a very good evening to you to continue |
| 0:56.5 | with the raven. You've seen the raven in the Tower of London. I want to start there because |
| 1:01.7 | that's part of my association. The Tower of London, it's impossible to avoid it if you read English |
| 1:07.9 | and American history. The raven is a very large bird and I take it |
| 1:13.2 | it has something of the aura of mythology around him. You've met a raven and he makes a strange |
| 1:20.7 | sound. So please explain how big and what the sound is and what you thought when you met a raven? |
| 1:29.4 | Ravens are like a crow on steroids. I mean, they're considerably bigger. They're about the same |
| 1:34.4 | size as a hawk, a buzzard, you know, red-tailed hawk, that sort of size. You know, they're a big bird, |
| 1:40.0 | and they have this very loud, deep call. So they sort of go, gr, gr, it's where they get their name, actually. |
| 1:47.4 | It's an omnipatioch name. |
| 1:48.8 | It's from an old Norse word grafen. |
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