![]() ![]() The animal sometimes wears a crown or a halo around its head. With the emergence of Christianity, the animal also became associated with the figure of Christ. During antiquity, the lion became a royal emblem. Lions have always been a symbol of power and courage, but also wisdom and justice. It was associated with several mighty personalities, the most famous of them being Richard the Lionheart, King of England. The lion was the king of all the animals, the main character of the medieval bestiary. Artists frequently depicted the animal in church paintings or sculptures. Sure, people rarely encountered lions in their everyday life, but they could be seen in royal menageries, a king’s collection of mostly exotic captive animals. 1230, via Getty.EduĪs surprising as it may seem, lions were not that exotic for medieval Western Europe. The Lion: The King Of The Medieval Bestiary Lion and Cubs in the Rochester Bestiary, unknown, ca. The Bestiaire d’Amour, or “Bestiary of Love,” quickly became famous all over Europe. He followed the example of the bestiaries, but far from creating a typical moralizing Christian text, he used beast symbolism to detail the steps and the woes of a love relationship. The Trouvère tradition, the tradition of medieval poets and songwriters in Northern France who wrote about courtly love inspired de Fournival’s bestiary. However, his religious background did not prevent him from writing the most famous erotic manuscript of the time. Son of a physician, Richard de Fournival followed in his father’s footsteps as a doctor, but he was also the chancellor of the cathedral chapter of Notre-Dame d’Amiens in France. 1245, via the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BnF)ġ245 marked the end of medieval bestiary tradition with the publication of the parodistic Bestiaire d’Amour written by French philosopher and trouvère Richard de Fournival. Image of a scribe and Image of a horse, from Bestiaire d’Amour, Richard de Fournival, ca. He described more than thirty beasts and a few precious stones. Philip de Thaon translated the Physiologus into old French, the earliest surviving transcription in this language. The bestiary written by the Anglo-Norman poet Philip de Thaon from 1121 to1135, is the oldest in French. The literary tradition evolved, and authors created philosophical bestiaries or bestiaries inspired by courtesy literature. ![]() Later, bestiaries spread to Northern France, in Latin for clergymen, and in French for laymen. But only wealthy aristocrats had the privilege to possess such precious manuscripts. The first bestiaries appeared in England during the 12th century. People could relate to the beasts’ personalities and their feelings. This predecessor of the bestiaries was translated and copied numerous times, thus influencing animal knowledge and symbolism for over a thousand years.īased on the Physiologus, early bestiaries served as educational tools to convey simple Christian morals. Throughout, the author described the appearance and behaviors of these animals, but the moral discourse associated with them was inspired by the Bible. The Physiologus gave descriptions of nearly fifty beasts. This text was possibly translated into Latin during the 4th century. Studying animals in medieval iconography allows us to understand the connections between the animal world, men, women, and society in general.Īt the time, the primary source of information regarding animals was the Physiologus, a Christian manuscript written in Greek by an unknown author in Alexandria, probably during the second century CE. They were also used in medieval songs, proverbs, and even as swear words!īeasts became prominent allegorical figures in the Middle Ages. Beasts spread across church interior walls, stained-glass, and bas-reliefs served as a teaching device for the illiterates in medieval society. They are found in numerous media such as seals, coats of arms, sculptures, architectural elements, and illustrations. ![]() Medieval iconography used animals and mythical beasts in abundance. Medievalists have played a key role in this investigation by studying a major source of information for animal studies, the medieval bestiary. But during the last several decades, thanks to the combined work of historians, zoologists, anthropologists, ethnologists, and linguists, animal studies have begun to thrive. Previously thought of as an anecdotal subject, animal studies have been neglected in the past. Medieval bestiary has recently become a subject of fascination among scholars, who have taken a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach. ![]()
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