Top ten medieval animal illustrations in manuscripts
(vibrating intensely with barely repressed excitement) yeah sure that sounds like something i could do
(from a french book of hours, c. 1400s)
sad mandolin-playing cat with its vulva out. i love this cat so much. i have a picture of it on my wall and one time i thought about it while i was high and it made me laugh so hard that i nearly threw up. sad mandolin-playing cat with its vulva out is my favourite medieval animal; there is no contest, nothing comes close.
(from the gorleston psalter, east anglia, angland, c. 1310-24)
i'm a really big fan of weapon-wielding rabbits in medieval art. it was hard to pick just one, but i eventually chose this guy: a gleeful rabbit getting ready to whang the king's head off with a big axe (king's expression suggests forlorn resignation).
drolleries of murderous rabbits crop up a lot in 13th and 14th-century manuscripts - sometimes jousting, sometimes overseeing executions, sometimes riding into battle on the backs of other animals - and it's generally thought to be a form of carnivalesque comic subversion, upending the stereotype of the rabbit as a meek, docile prey animal. there's a fun article about rabbits in medieval art here, if you want to see some more examples.
from Der naturen bloeme, the netherlands, c. 1350)
i think this is supposed to be a mussell, but God, just look at him. he's perfect. ideal body, peak performance, no notes.
4. crows holding a Very Important Meeting
5. old (mer)man yaoi. well actually i don't know what's going on here but it seems intimate
7. distressed lion receiving a manicure
8. a brave attempt at an elephant
10. the oldest cat you have ever seen
i hope you enjoy these beafts as much as i do!!
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