The Medieval Menagerie: Animals in the Art of the Middle AgesAbbeville Press, 1992 - 191 pages "Featuring incredible creatures and grotesque gargoyles, "The Medieval Menagerie" takes us from the improbable to the impossible as it traces the depiction and the meaning of real and imaginary animals in medieval art. From unicorns and dragons to elephants, lions, and monkeys, medieval society was fascinated with animals, whether they actually existed or not. The more fantastic the creature, the greater its hold seems to have been on the fertile imaginations of the Middle Ages. Both art and literature abound with vividly concocted examples of Gothic monsters (gargoyles and griffins), bizarre ideas about real if exotic beasts (lions were believed to be born dead and resurrected by the father lion three days later), and strange visions of composite creatures (such as a widely accepted animal believed to be a cross between an ant and a lion). Featuring the celebrated collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, "The Medieval Menagerie" is illustrated with the splendid and amusing beasts found in medieval painting, sculpture, architecture and decorative arts, as wello as in bestiaries and manuscripts. The text explores the depiction and the meaning of real and imaginary animals in medieval art. Elegant, lively and intelligent, "The Medieval Managerie" captures some of the wildest creatures ever to grace a Gothic cathedral."--Amazon.ca product desc. |
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ancient animal imagery animals in medieval antiquity appears aquamanile Aulnay beautiful Belles Heures Bernard Bernard of Clairvaux Bestiaire bestiary explains birds body bonnacon Bonne of Luxembourg Book of Beasts Bourges camels Capital from cloister carved Cathedral figure centaur century B.C. Champlevé Christian church Cloisters Apocalypse Cloisters Collection composite creatures demonstrated depicted devil dragon Duc de Berry elephant English fantastic fish four animals France Franco-Flemish French Fresco gargoyles goat Greek griffin head Heures de Jean horse human hunt hunters illuminated imaginary interpretation invented Jean Pucelle lamb leopard Limbourg brothers lion medieval art medieval artists medieval bestiaries medieval menagerie mermaid Metropolitan Museum Middle Ages monkey monsters Morgan Library Musée de Cluny Museum of Art narthex Paris Physiologus Pliny religious represents Saint-Pierre satyr serpent sheep siren Souillac Spain stag story symbol of Christ tail tapestry thirteenth century transept portal trumeau twelfth century unicorn Villard virgin west facade winged York