Culture

Month: September 2011

  • Sheep

    Sheep /ovis/ medallion 6.8 cm in diameter The greater part of the text about the sheep in the bestiary and in the work by Pseudo-Hungh /III. 13/ is taken from Isidor /ХИЛ.9/ who had derived the name of the animal from “oblatio” — “offerings”. Describing this placid and defenseless creature, the text says that with…

  • The Sheep

    The Sheep Capital. Church in Aosta. XII century

  • Ram

    Ram /vervex, aries/ medallion 6.1 cm in diameter The bestiary and Pseudo-Hugh /11.14/ reproducing the text by Isidor /XII.1.10—11/ who quotes Celi-us Sedulius, a famous poet of the fifth century, explains the name “vervex” by “a viribus” which means strength, by his being a male /”vir”/ or else because he has maggots /vermes/ in his…

  • Lamb

    Lamb /agnus/ 10.2X4.8 cm The text of the bestiary and of Pseudo-Hugh /III. 15/ follow Isidor who derives the name “agnus” not from the Greek “ayvo’g” /pure/ but uses it as “pius”, which is “pious”. It is also believed that the name originates from “agnoscat” since the animal can recognize his mother among other animals.…

  • The Rams

    The Rams Capital. Church in Saint-Aignan. XII century

  • He-goat

    He-goat and Kids /hircus et haedi/ 10X6.5 cm The text about the he-goat reproduces the text by Isidor /XII.1.13—14/ who says, referring to Suetonius, that the he-goat has narrow eyes. In all probability, the medieval writer mistook “hircani” for “hirci”. The Hyrcani are the Mongoloid inhabitants of Hyrcania described by Suetonius. The story mentions that…

  • The He-goat

    The He-goat Capital. Church in Mozac. XII century

  • The He-Goat

    The He-Goat Miniatre. Bestiary of the Bodleian Library. Oxford. N 764, f. 36 v.

  • Bullock

    Bullock /juvencus/ 10.3×6.9 cm The text of the bestiary and that of Preudo-Hueh is a repetition of the story by Isidor /XIII 28/ who, following Varron /V.96/, derived “juventus” from juvare” /to be useful for tilling soil/ Or it may be because it was always the bullock who was sacrificed to Jupiter. The wild Indian…

  • The Bullock

    The Bullock Capital. Church in Saint-Pons-de-Tomiere. Late XI century. Paris. Louvre

  • Ox

    Ox /bos/ 10.1X6.5 cm The chapter on the ox reproduces the text by Isidor /XII.1.30—32/ who repeats Varron saying that the Latins called them “triones” because they walked on the ground /terra/ /VII.74/. The chapter emphasizes the kindness of oxen, their extraordinary sense of comradeship which was mentioned also by St.Ambrose, and says that they…

  • The Ox

    The Ox. St. Luke Evangelist and his symbol. Miniature of the manucript. XII century. New-York. The Morgan Library. N 777, f. 37 v.

  • Camel

    Camel /camelus/ 10.2X7.2 cm The story of the camel repeats the text by Isidore /XII.1.35/ who drew on writings by Pliny /VIII. 18.26/ and Solinus /49.9/, it is repeated by Pseudo-Hugh /111.20/. The word “camel” comes from the Greek — “camurus” which stands for “curved” or from “cami” which is “inclined” or “bent”. The text…

  • Dromedary

    Dromedary /dromedarius/, Ass /asinus/, Horse /equus/ The two sheets right after the story of the camel with the text on the dromedary and the ass and the beginning of the chapter on horses are missing in the Saint Petersburg bestiary and the text continues on sheet 44. The relevant texts in the New York bestiary…

  • The Camel

    The Camel Enamel Plate. XII century. London. Victoria and Albert Museum

  • Cat

    Cat /catus, musio/ 10X5 cm Pseudo-Hugh /III.24/ and the bestiaries which are close to Isidore’s version /XII.2.38/ derive the word “musio” from “mus” /mouse/, and “catus” from “captare” /capture/ because of the cat’s abilities to catch its prey; or from the Greek “catus” /acute/ implying the cat’s acute eyesight and his ability to see in…

  • The Cats

    The Cats Miniature. Bestiary of the Bodleian Library. Oxford. N 764, f. 51

  • Mouse

    Mouse /mus/ medallion 3.3 cm in diameter The text of the bestiary and that of Pseudo-Hugh /III.25/ come from “Etymologiae” by Isidor /XII. III.1.2./ who derived the word “mus” from the mouse being born of soil humidity /ex-humore, humus/. From Pliny /XI.37.76/ is derived the idea that the liver of a mouse gets bigger and…

  • Mole

    Mole /talpa/ medallion 4 cm in diameter The text of the bestiary and that of Pseudo-Hugh /III.26/ repeat the story by Isidore /XII.III.5/. The mole is condemned to life in eternal darkness underground. He has no eyes and always digs through the ground and eats the roots of plants. The description of the mole comes…

  • The mole

    The mole Miniature. Bestiary of the Bodleian Library. Oxford, N 764. f. 51

  • Leucrota

    Leucrota /leucrota/ 10X8.7 cm The legend of leucrota comes to the bestiary, to the treatise of Pseudo-Hugh /III.7/ and to writings by Brunetto Latini /I.V.194/ from Pliny /VIII.21.30/ and Solinus /52.34/. Leucrota lives in India and is very swift-footed. He is the size of an ass, has the haunches of a stag, the breast of…

  • The Leucrota

    The Leucrota Miniature. Bestiary of the Cambridge University Library. II.4.26

  • Eagle

    Eagle /aquila/ 10×7.5 cm The chapter on the eagle, the king of all birds, opens the section on birds, just like the legend about the lion opens the section on beasts. In the original “Physiologus” the story of the eagle was not assigned so important a place, which is accounted for by the fact that…

  • The Eagle

    The Eagle Miniature. Bestiary of the Bodleian Library. Oxford. N 764, f. 57 v.

  • Vulture

    Vulture /vultur/ 10X6.1 cm Absent in the early versions of “Physiologus”, versions ” Y”, “C” and “B”, the tale of the vulture is based on texts by Isidor /XII.VII.12/ and St.Ambrose /V.20.64; V.23.81/. Like Isidor, the bestiary compilers form the name “vultur” out of “a volatu tardo” which means slow flight. The text describes the…

  • The Vulture

    The Vulture Capital. Church in Chauvigny. XII century.

  • Swan

    Swan /olon/ 10X7 cm The whole text is taken from Isidor /XII.VII.19/ who used a story by Pliny /X.23.32/. The swan is all white, and is called “olor” from the Greek “holos” which means “all”, since “Nobody has ever heard of a black swan”. The singing of the swan, already mentioned by Plato /Phedon 85…

  • The Swan

    The Swan Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. Ill, N 1, f. 30 v.

  • The Swan

    The Swan Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. Ill, N 131, f. 33 v.

  • Crane

    Crane /grus/ 10.2×6.9 cm The text originates from Isidor /XII.VII.14/ who quotes Lucan /Pharsalia,7.716/ and draws on writings by Pliny /23.80; X.29.42/ and Solinus /10.12— 16/, his story is also traceable to Aristotle /IX.614.B. 18/. In the text the chief emphasis is on the cranes’ strict orderliness in life; they fly in a strict line…

  • The Crane

    The Crane Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. Ill, N 1, f. 22

  • The Crane

    The Crane Miniature. Bestiary of the Bodleian Library. Oxford. ms.Ashmole 1511

  • Parrot

    Parrot /psittacus, psitacus/ 10.2X4.4 cm The text is taken partly from the story by Isidore /XII.VII.24/ and also makes use of the knowledge provided by Pliny /X.41.58/ and Solinus /52.43/. It is a green bird with a red collar which lives in India only. It imitates human speech and while it is young it can…

  • The Parrot

    The Parrot Church capital XIII century

  • Stork

    Stork /ciconia/ 10×6 cm The text which depicts the stork as an enemy of serpents and a herald of spring is taken from Isidor /XII.VIII.16—17/. The name “ciconia” is an ono-matopoec word as it imitates the sound produced by storks. It is first mentioned by Ovid /Metamorphoses, VI.97/. Pliny says that old storks are looked…

  • The Stork

    The Stork. Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. Ill N 1, f. 24

  • The Stork

    The Stork Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. I, N 134, f. 27

  • Haltion

    Haltion /halcyon/ medallion 6.1 cm in diameter The alcyon, the halcyon of romantic poetry and the “alkonost” of ancient Russian folklore, is a sea-bird. Halcyon was fabled by the ancient to have the power to charm winds and waves into calmness. In the middle of winter the bird lays eggs in coastal sand. For seven…

  • Cinomolgus

    Cinomolgus /cinnamolgus/ 8.7 X 14 cm Though the miniature showing the bird is placed next to the text about the halcyon and later the word “alciona” was written on the margins, it is a traditional illustration to a chapter about the cinomolgus given on f.51 v of the Saint Petersburg bestiary. The cinomolgus is an…

  • Ercinee

    Ercinee /hercinia, ercinee/ medallion 6.8 cm diameter The text is the exact repetition of the story by Isi-dor /XII.VII.31/. The ercinee is the bird of the German forests, her feathers shine so brightly that even in darkness they are dazzling. The bird is mentioned by Pliny /X.47.67/ and Solinus /20.3/ Pseudo-Hugh devotes a whole chapter…

  • Partridge

    Partridge /perdix/ medallion 5.4 cm in diameter The text is fairy similar to that to Pseudo-Hugh /III.32/. It tells about the partridge stealing eggs from other birds’ nests. The miniature is somewhat different from most miniatures in the bestiary. The thick colour layer, the bold black line, the use of colours that are rare in…

  • Hawk

    Hawk /accipiter/ medallion 5.7 cm in diameter The text repeats Isidor’s story /XII.7.55—56/ about a bird of prey better equipped in spirit than in its talons. He does not distinguish between a hawk and a falcon, deriving its name “accipiter” from “accipiendo, accipio” which means “to seize”. The story tells us about the courage of…

  • Magpie and Woodpecker

    Magpie and Woodpecker /pica et picus/ medallion 5.5 cm in diameter Following Isidore /XII.VII.46/ who quotes a line from the epigram by Martial /1.14.76/ in the chapter about the magpie, the bestiary compares the garrulous magpie with a poet, since the magpie utters the words as distinctly as a man during a recital does. The…

  • The Маgpie

    The Маgpie. Miniature. Bestiary °f the Bodleian Library. Oxford. ms.Ashmole 1511, f. 48 v

  • Nightingale

    Nightingale /luscinia, lucinia, lucina/ medallion 5.5 cm in diameter The ancient writers /Pliny, X.29.43/ and the medieval ones /St.Ambrose, V.12.39; Isidor, XII.VII.37; Psuedo-Hugh III.33/ as well as New European men of letters, especially poets, are unanimous in praising the wonderful singing of the nightingale. The text, originating from St.Ambrose and Isidor, relates the story of…

  • Bats

    Bats /vespertilio/ 10X6.3 cm Following Isidor /XII.VII.36/ in the bestiary “vespertilio” is derived from “vesper” /evening/. The writer seems a little surprised by the strange creature when he repeats the story by Isidor saying that these “mean creatures” have wings and four legs, and they do not lay eggs but bring forth the living young.…

  • Bats

    Bats Relief of pews. Poitiers. XIII century

  • Raven, Crow

    Raven /corvus, corax/ medaUion 5.4 cm in diameter Repeating Isidore /XII.VII.43/ the bestiary indicates that the name „corvus” comes from the croaking sound of the raven’s voice. It is said to be a bird which refuses to feed his children until black feathers grow on them and he recognizes in them his younglings. The belief…

  • The Raven

    The Raven Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. Ill, N 1, f. 14 v.

  • Swallow

    Swallow /hirundo/ medallion 3.2 cm in diameter The tale of a swallow comes to us from Isidor /XII. VII.70/ and not from original “Physiologus”. Isidor explains the meaning of “hirundo” by the fact that the bird takes food while on the wing, that is in the air /haerendo, aerendo/. The swallow flies in circles and…

  • The Swallow

    The Swallow Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. Ш, N I, f. 23

  • The Swallow

    The Swallow Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. I, N 131. f. 26

  • Quail

    Quail /coturnix/ medallion 3.5 cm in diameter The text is borrowed from Isidor /XII.VI.64—66/ who says that the Greek called the bird “ortygia” because quails were first seen on the island of Ortygia /Delos/ and describes the quails’ flying across the sea. While the flock is flying, the birds guard their leader against a falcon.…

  • The Quail

    The Quail Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. I, N 131, f. 32.

  • The Quail

    The Quail Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. Ill, N 1, f. 29 v.

  • Peacock

    Peacock /pavo/ 10X5.7 cm The tale of the peacock given in the bestiary is remote from the late Greek versions of “Physiologus”. Many antique descriptions of the peacock /Varron, V.75; Aelian 111.42/ and early Christian ones “Patro-logia Graeca” v. XLIII, p. 527/ are not used in it either. The image of the peacock associated with…

  • The Peacock

    The Peacock Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. Ill, N 1, f. 31

  • Cock

    Cock /gallus/ medallion 5 cm in diameter The text follows the story by Isidor /XII.VII.50/ and includes interpolations from St.Ambrose’s “Hexa-meron” /V.24.88/. The cock is named “gallus” after the emasculated priets of Cybele. The crowing of a cock wakes the sleeping, forewarns the anxious, consoles travellers. On hearing the cock the robber leaves his wiles,…

  • Duck and Goose

    Duck and Goose /anas et anser/ medallion 4 cm in diameter The text is taken from Isidore /XII.VII.51—52/ who explains the name “anas” by the bird’s capacity for constant swimming /ab assiduitate natandi/, “anser” — by its likeness to the duck. The story of the goose announcing the night hours by cackling and his ability…

  • The Cock

    The Cock Miniature. Manuscript of the LPL.Lat.Q.V. III. N 1, f. 16 v.