Commemorating World Elephant Day with not one, not two, but three major medieval elephant motifs, as found in the Queen Mary Psalter (British Library, Royal MS 2 B VII, f. 118v). This manuscript was made between about 1310 and 1320 in England. It was later owned by Mary I (Bloody Mary), hence its nickname.
Elephant and castle: British Library, Royal MS 2 B VII, f. 119
The elephants appear in some of the 464 illustrations that were added to the bottom margins of the Psalter's pages (not to mention its 223 Old Testament images, 104 half- or full-page miniatures, and 24 decorated calendar pages). Elephants appear nestled between Biblical texts and depictions of saints and fantastic creatures: perhaps its artist would have been a fan of World Elephant Day, had it existed in the fourteenth century.
British Library, Royal MS 2 B VII, f. 100v And at least real elephants do not have to worry about dragons trying to cool their burning innards by drinking their blood or snacking on their calves, nor unicorns causing a nuisance, despite their other challenges. Queen Mary Psalter Date: c. 1310-1320 Origin: England (London? East Anglia?) Materials: parchment, ink, and paint Now London, British Library, Royal MS 2 B VII, f. 118v
