Animal Parallelism in Medieval Literature

8/3/2019 Animal Parallelism in Medieval Literature

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ANIM AL P ARALLELISM IN MEDIEVAL LITERATURE AND THEBESTIARIES: A PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION

It was one of the fundamental character traits of the early Christian and medieval mentali-ties that the signifying, symbolizing, and allegorizing function was anything but arbitraryor subjective; symbols were believed to represent objectively and to express faithfully variousaspects of a universe that was perceived as widely and deeply meaningful.This is one of the descriptions of symbolism given by Ladner in a seminalarticle originally delivered to the Mediaeval Aca dem y of America. 1 Seeingthe world from a theological perspective had its effect on the way the animalking dom was regarded. In a theocentric world animals were merely one partin the hierarchy that ranged from stones to angels and on to God himself.The Physiologus and the bestiaries which it inspired reflect this to the extentthat they life the natural world to a higher plane with their moralizations.They are essentially didactic works, rather than works of natural historyas Aristotle's Historia animalium had been. Whereas Aristotle had aimedat a systematic investigation of nature, the Physiologus tried to explainand 'justify the ways of God to men', or as Wirtjes puts it in her recentedition of the Middle English Physiologus: 'Nature is not studied for itsown sake but for what it can tell us about God's purpose and about howwe should conduct our lives. Nature has become a metaphor, a book tobe studied by all good Christians. '2 The Physiologus was therefore compose din a spirit similar to that which inspired Origen's Commentary on theSongs o f Songs, where one finds:The apostle Paul teaches us that the invisible things of God may be known through thevisible (invisibilia Dei ex visibilibus intelligantur), and things which are not seen may becontemplated by reason of and likeness to those things which are seen. He shows by thisthat this visible world may teach about the invisible and that earth may contain certain patternsof things heavenly, so that we may rise from lower to higher things (utab his, quae deorsumsunt, ad ea, quae sursum sunt possimus adscendere)and out of those we see on earth perceiveand know those which are in the heavens. As a certain likeness of these, the Creator has givena likeness of creatures which are on earth, by which the differences more easily might begathered and perceived?It was perhaps inevitable that a number of animal stories and features, whichhad traditionally been associated with certain particular animals, startedto overlap. Although we find this type of parallelism throughout thebestiaries, quite a number of these parallels can be classified in certainwell-defined subject areas. It is these parallelisms that will be consideredhere. After a brief discussion of the Physiologus and the bestiaries, and afar from exhaustive listing of some of the parallels, two subject areas inwhich many parallels can be classified and which, according to some,make the world go round (namely, religion and sex), will be consideredin somewhat greater detail. As the subject is a vast one only some broad

Neophilologus 78: 483-496, 1994. 1994 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.


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484 L.A.J.R. Houwenoutlines can be sketched here, and although some aspects of the subjectwill be treated in greater detail, it should be emphasised that this treat-ment is far from exhaustive and most details mentioned deserve independentstudy.

The P h y s i o l o g u s and its derivatives provided the foundation for thelater use of animals and their symbolism; this was further developed inthe twelfth century and later with the bestiaries. As the bestiary genredeveloped it came to include at least two subgenres, viz . the be s t ia i r ed ' a m o u r and the heraldic bestiary.4 Whereas the b e s t i a i r e d ' a m o u r is quitedifferent from the more traditional bestiary both in structure and in theme,concentrating as it does on a secular interpretation of the bestiary materialin terms of a m o u r c o u rt o is , the heraldic bestiary is closely modelled onthe more traditional bestiary type but distinguishes itself by replacing thes ign i f i c a t io or s e n s u s m o r a l i s by a more appropriate heraldic moraliza-tion. Thus in de Bado Aureo's T rac ta tus de a rm is , probably composed atthe end of the fourteenth century,5 it is shown that the man who first assumeda hawk in his arms was 'a slender, weak and daring man, better armedwith courage than with bodily strength, because this bird is armed ratherwith courage than might and talons, and what it lacks in strength is madeup in skill, cunning and courage'. Both the long Latin version and the Welshtranslation of this work have the interesting story, based on AlexanderNeckam's D e n a t u r i s r er u m , that 'on a cold night in winter the hawk seizesa bird and keeps it under its feet until the next day to save being cold;and then sets it free. And if during the next day it should meet that birdseveral times it would not cause it any harm because of the help and comfortderived from it, and because of that noble nature the hawk is superior tothe lords and proud men, as Alexander says. 6 An even better example ofthis genre is the late fifteenth-century Middle Scots D e i d i s o f A r m o r i e , whichcombines some basic tracts on heraldry with a heraldic bestiary in whichseventy-seven animals are discussed in this way.7 There it can be read,for example, that the man who first bore a griffin in arms is covetous andcrafty and will keep all the gold which the griffin was said to guard on amountain in Asia, rather than distribute it among his soldiers. 8

Aided by medieval encyclopaedias like Isidore's Ety m olog ie s , Vincent ofBeauvais' S p e c u l u m n a t u r a l e and Bartholomaeus Anglicus' D e p r o p r i -e t a t i b u s r e r u m , by traveller's tales (such as M a n d e v i l l e ' s T r a v e l s ) andromances set in the east (Alexander romances), bestiaries disseminatedanimal lore and legend all over Europe. Their enormous popularity, whichextended beyond the Middle Ages into modern time s also ensured thatthe genre remained productive. Furthermore, bestiaries had a tremendousinfluence on literature, and influence, moreover, which was a reciprocal one:not only did the bestiaries influence works of literature but these literaryworks in their turn left their mark on the accounts of animals. A goodillustration of the influence of the bestiaries on literary works is found inR e y n a r d t h e F o x as related by Caxton. Corbant the rook complains to King


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Bestiaries 485Noble about how Reynard bit off his wife's head when the two birds hadgone to 'play's on the heath:I w e n t e t o d a y b y t h e m o r o w w y t h s h a r p e b e k m y w y f f o r t h e p la y e v p o n t h e b e t h A n dt h e r e la y e r e y n a r t th e f o x e d o u n o n t h e g r o u n d e l y k e a d e d e k e y t y f / h y s e y e n s t a r e d a n dh i s t o n g e h e n g e l o n g e o u t o f h i s m o u t h / l y k e a n h o u n d e h a d be n d e e d / / w e t a s te d a n d f e l teh i s b e l y / / b u t w e f o n d e t h e r o n n o l y f / t h o w e n t e m y w y f a n d h e r k e n e d a n d l e y d e h e r e r e t of o r e h is m o u t h f o r t o w i t e y f h e d r e w e h i s b r e e t h / / w h i c h e m y s f y l l e h e r e u y l J / F o r t h e f a l s ef e l l e f o x e a w a y t e d w e l h i s ty m e a n d w h a n h e s a w e h e r s o n y g h h y m / h e c a u g h t h e r b y t h eh e e d a n d b o o t e i t o f . . . 9

The fox feigning death by throwing himself on his back and bloating himselfup in order to lure and make a meal of the birds that come and sit on hisbelly is, of course, a clear instance of the familiar Physiologus story makingits way into the Roman de Renard. t The opposite case, with the Romancreeping into the bestiary, occurs when the fox is referred to not by hisgeneric name but by his proper name, Reynard. In Philippe de Thaun'stwelfth-century bestiary he is still only referred to by his generic name('goupil'); in the thirteenth-century bestiary of Richard de Fournival both'goupil' and the proper name Reynard are used; a later thirteenth-centurybestiary uses only the proper name. 11 In the descript ion of the raven inthe Deidis o f Armorie the fox is also referred to by its proper name: 'makisfrendschip with l~e rennart, for ~e rennart is suttell in takin of prais. '12According to Varty: 'It is clear to see that, as the reputation of Pierre deSaint Cloud's fox grew, the Bestiary fox became identified with him. t3

When the descriptions of animals in medieval literature are examinedit is found that many of their characteristics are not unique and are sharedby other animals. The medieval method of catching an elephant is asfollows: the hunter partly saws through the trunk of the tree which theelephant uses to sleep against; when the elephant subsequently leans againstit the tree breaks and the elephant falls down; because he has no joints hecannot get up (except with the help of young elephants) and may thus beeasily taken. The same story is also told about the so-called 'alce', possiblya reindeer or a moose. TM Similarly, the characteristics of the Indian asswere eventually ascribed to the unicorn, the 'nature' of which becameeven more complex when at a still later date the characteristics of therhinoceros were added to those of the Indian ass. Single features ascribedto animals are often shared by a number of them: griffins and ostriches,for example, both hate horses; both the lion and the hare sleep with theireyes open, although it was only the lion who was seen as a figure or typeof Christ whose godhead was ever awake (the hare's wakefulness gaverise to the idea of the so-called somnus leporinus, still known in Dutch asa 'hazeslaapje' but now known in English as a catnap); and both basilisksand wolves were known to paralyze or kill men with their looks. Moreover,several animals were associated with (precious) stones. The pike and theasp were thought to have one each in their heads, and the latter of these


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486 L.A.J.R. Houwenis identified by Gower in his Confessio Amantis as a carbuncle. This, heexplains, is the reason why the snake-charmer pursues the asp, who resistshis charm by stopping one of its ears with its tail, while pressing the otherto the ground. 15 These facts may have evolved into the story as told inthe eighteenth dialogue of The Dialoges o f Creatures Mora lysed in whicha serpent (cerastes) desires to wear an agate between its horns so as to makeitself more graceful. 16 The Ancrene Riwle describes how the eagle was wontto place the agate in its nest to protect its young from venomous snakes 17but according to Albertus Magnus the stone was intended to increase thefertility of the eggs. 18 The hyena was thought to have a jewel in its eye'which is believed to make a person able to foresee the future if he keepsit under his tongue' ;19 and the urine of the lynx"hardened into precious stoneswhich the ungracious animal subsequent ly buried. 2 The sun functionedas a purifying force for several animals: the eagle flew up to it when itseyes had grown dim to have the dimness burnt away (and his wings too,which are then restored by bathing thrice in a fountain),21 the phoenix isburnt by the sun on the altar of the priest of Heliopolis,2z and the lizard,when it grows old, squeezes itself through a narrow gap in a wall, facingthe sun, and thus rejuvenates itself, z3

This type of animal parallelism has many different causes. Confusionprompted by a similarity in names and/or features may be one of them:witness, for example, the confusion that exists between ichneumon,enhydris, hydrus, cocatris, crocodile and basilisk)4 Shared characteristicsmay also be caused by 'cross-pollination': both the panther and the whaleare credited with having a sweet breath, which may be explained by the factthat in the oldest Latin texts of the bestiary the chapter on the whale oraspidoceleon follows that on the panther. 25 Diekstra, in a recent article onbestiaries and medieval animal lore, shows in what ways the Physiologusis occasionally adapted to suit its Christian purpose. 26 This, i t is claimed,manifests itself in various ways, as in the arrangement of some animalsto form 'oppositional or complementary pairs' such as the already men-tioned case of the panther whose sweet breath symbolises salvation whereasthat of the whale symbolises damnation. Many examples are also givenof transference, where the characteristics of one animal are transferred tothe description of another (various examples of this are given below). Thesetransferences may be due to faulty transmission or misreadings. Examplesof this abound, such as that of the ascription of the procreative habits ofthe weasel (who conceives through the ear and gives birth through themouth) to that of the shark (or spotted lizard, galeotes, in Pliny), due to con-fusion of Greek galeds 'shark' and GallO 'weasel'. A slightly differentcase is that of false etymologies. Take that of the mouse for example. Isidoresays that m us comes from humus because it is engendered by the dampnessof the earth, thus classifying it among the animals characterised by theircapability of spontaneous generationY


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Bestiaries 4 8 7H o w e v e r i n t e r e st i n g t h e s e c a u s e s m a y b e , th e p r e s e n t c o n c e r n i s n o t

w i t h c a u s e s b u t w i t h t h e i r u l t i m a t e r e s u l t s . T h e f i r s t s u b j e c t a r e a t o b ec o n s i d e r e d i n s o m e w h a t g r e a t e r d e ta i l is th a t o f t h e s e x u a l a s p e c ts o fa n i m a l s . K e i t h T h o m a s n o t e s t h a t ' m e n a t t r ib u t e d to a n i m a l s t h e n a tu r a li m p u l s e s t h e y m o s t f e a r e d i n t h e m s e l v e s - f e r o c i t y , g l u t to n y , s e x u a l i t y -e v e n t h o u g h i t w a s m e n , n o t b e as t s, w h o m a d e w a r o n t h e ir o w n s p e c i e s ,a t e m o r e t h a n w a s g o o d f o r t h e m a n d w e r e s e x u a l l y a c ti v e a ll th e y e a r r o u n d .I t w a s a s a c o m m e n t o n h u m a n n a t u r e t h a t t h e c o n c e p t o f " a n i m a l i t y " w a sd e v i s e d ' . 2~ I t w i ll t h e r e f o r e c o m e a s n o s u r p r i s e t h a t t h e s e x u a l b e h a v i o u ro f a n i m a l s i s a r e c u r r i n g t h e m e i n t h e b e s ti a r ie s a n d m e d i e v a l ( d i d a c t ic )l i t e r a t u r e .

N u m e r o u s a n i m a l s w e r e f o u n d t o s y m b o l i s e lu s t, l a sc i v o u s n e s s o r s e x u a li n f i d e l i t y . L u s t , a c c o r d i n g t o B a t h o l o m e w B a t t y , a s i x t e e n t h - c e n t u r ym o r a l is t , m a d e m e n ' l i k e . . . s w i ne , g o a ts , d o g s a nd t h e m o s t s a v ag e a n db r u t i s h b e a s t s i n t h e w o r l d ' a n d t h e a n i m a l e x a m p l e s t h a t h e u s e s a r e t h et r a d i t i o n a l m e d i e v a l o n e s . z9 T h e g o a t h a s b e e n a s y m b o l o f l i b i d o f r o mt h e e a r li e s t ti m e s . A c c o r d i n g t o t h e m e d i e v a l e n c y c l o p a e d i s t s i t w a s s ol e c h e r o u s t h a t i t s b l o o d c o u l d d i s s o l v e a d i a m o n d a n d i n J o h n G o w e r ' sMirour de l ' omine , l e c h e r y r i d es a g o a t . ~ M a r e s c o u l d s y m b o l i s e l u s t fu lw o m e n ; R o b e r t M a n n y n g o f B r u n ne i n h is Handlyng Synne d o e s n o t l e a v em u c h t o t h e i m a g i n a t io n w h e n h e u se s ' m a r e ' c o n t e m p t u o u s l y o f a w o m a nw h e n h e s ay s th a t ' s h a m e h y t y s e u re a y w h a r e / T o b e c a ll e d a p r e st e sm a r e ' . 31 T h e h o r s e i n g e n e r a l c o u l d s y m b o l i s e l us t: u n c o n t r o l l a b l e s t ee d sf e a t u r e i n P r u d e n t i u s ' P s y c h o m a c h i a w h e r e t h e y a r e m o u n t e d b y P r i d ea n d L u s t , a n d i n t h e th i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y M i d d l e E n g l i s h De cler ico e t puel laP u e l l a r e f e r s t o t h e l o v e - a c t a s r i d i n g a ' w y c k e d h o r s . ' 3z A n o t h e r a n i m a la s s o c i a t e d w i t h l u s t i s t h e a p e . R o w l a n d n o t e s th a t ' t h e a p e o f l u st a p p e a r so n a l e a s h h e l d b y a w o m a n i n a d e s i g n e n t i t l e d D e f i d e c o n c u b i n a ri u mb y P a u l C l e ar iu s , ci r c a 1 50 5. S o m e t i m e s i t h o l d s a m i r r o r . . . T h e p e r si s-t e n c e o f t h e a p e a s a m o r e g e n e r a l s y m b o l o f si n a n d s e x u a l l i c e n s e is e v i d e n ti n m e d i e v a l i l l u s tr a t i o n s a n d i n s c u l p t u r e s o f th e a p e r i d i n g o n o t h e r s y m b o l so f l e c h e r y : a g o a t , h o u n d , o r p i g . '3 3 O t h e r s u c h l u s t f u l a n i m a l s a r e t h eb e a r ( m a l e s e x u a l i t y ) , t h e b o a r , t h e c e n t a u r , t h e h a r e , t h e m e r m a i d a n d , o fa l l c r e a t u r e s , t h e m o u s e .

T o p r o c e e d f r o m t h e g e n e r a l to th e m o r e s p e c i f i c ' le t m e c o u n t t h ew a y s ' , o r r a t h e r , h i g h l i g h t o n e t h a t c e r t a i n l y h a d l a t e r a u t h o r s b a f f l e d , viz.r e t r o c o p u l a t i o n o r b a c k - t o - b a c k c o p u l a t i o n . S i r T h o m a s B r o w n e c e r t a i n l yw o u l d h a v e n o n e o f i t, a t l e a s t n o t w i t h r e s p e c t to t h e e l e p h a n t , a l t h o u g hh e w o u l d a p p e a r t o b e m u c h m o r e c r e d u l o u s w i t h r e sp e c t to s o m e o t h e ra n i m a l s . 34 I n t h e m e d i e v a l p e r i o d , h o w e v e r , t h e b e l i e f w a s w i d e s p r e a d a n df o r m e d o n e o f t h e s t a n d a r d e l e m e n t s i n t h e b e s ti a r y d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h ee l e p h a n t , a n a n i m a l w h i c h w a s o t h e r w i s e r e n o w n e d f o r it s c h a s ti ty . I n a na m u s i n g i f s o m e w h a t s u p e r f l u o u s f o o t n o t e T .H . W h i t e a s s u r es h i s re a d e r st h a t e l e p h a n t s , i n f ac t , ' c o p u l a t e in t h e o r d i n a r y w a y a n d , a c c o r d i n g t o L i e u t . -


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4 8 8 L.A.J .R . HouwenC o l o n e l C . H . W i l li a m s , m o r e g r a c e f u l l y t h a n m o s t . '35 I f th e b e s t i a r i st s a n de n c y c l o p a e d i s t s a r e t o b e b e l i e v e d t h i s c u r i o u s b e h a v i o u r w a s c o m m o n t om o r e a n i m a l s , a m o n g t h e m t h e l i o n , l y n x , c a m e l , r h i n o c e r o s , t i g e r a n dh y e n a ) 6 I n t h e c a s e o f th e h e d g e h o g i t i s n o t to o d i f fi c u l t t o i m a g i n e w h yt h e y w e r e t h o u g h t t o f a v o u r t h is p a r t ic u l a r p o s i t i o n . A c c o r d i n g t oB a r t h o l o m a e u s A n g l i c u s ' w i l d e y r c h o u n s g en d re l~ s t o n d y n e w il9 b a k y t o m e dt o b a k , f o r i n lg at p a r t y e i n 1 9e w h i c h e 10e s u p e r f l u y t e p a s s e l9 o u t e 1 9e re h et o c h e s h e m s e l f i n g e n e r a c o u n . ''3 7 I n a f e w o f t h e s e i n s t a n c e s, s u c h a s t h o s eo f th e h a r e a n d t h e h y e n a , t h e b e l i e f in r e t r o c o p u l a t i o n a p p e a r s t o b e l i n k e dw i t h t h e a s s u m e d h e r m a p h r o d i t i c n a t ur e o f t h es e a n i m a l s.

T h e i d e a o f s p o n t a n e o u s c o n c e p t i o n h a s a n a n c i e nt h i s to r y b u t i t p r o v e de x c e e d i n g l y v a l u a b l e f o r m e d i e v a l e x e g e t i ca l w r i te r s. A m o n g t h e i n st a n ce so f p a r t h e n o g e n e s i s , t h o s e th a t d e a l w i t h a n i m a l s i m p r e g n a t e d b y th e w i n dp o s s i b l y a p p e a l m o s t t o t h e i m a g i n a t i o n . T h r e e a n i m a l s w e r e c o m m o n l ya s s o c i a t e d w i t h th i s p h e n o m e n o n : m a r e s , v u l t u r e s a n d h e n s , b u t l a m b s ,t i g r e s s e s a n d e v e n p i k e s h a v e a l s o b e e n k n o w n t o b e s i m i l a r l y a f f e c t e d .I n f a c t, in t h e M i d d l e E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t io n o f P a l l a d i u s ' D e r e r u s t i c a , th ed i r e c t io n o f t h e w i n d i s e v e n t h o u g h t t o d e t e r m i n e t h e s e x o f th e s h e e p ' so f f sp r in g . T h i s b e l i e f i n w h a t Z i r c l e a p t ly t e r m e d a n a e m o p h i l o u s a n i m a l sw a s s k i lf u l ly a d a p t e d b y s o m e C h u r c h F a t h e r s to d e m o n s t r a t e t h a t t h e V i r g inB i r t h o f C h r i st w a s n o t a n im p o s s i b i l i t y . I t m a y b e w o r t h q u o t i n g S t.A m b r o s e a t s o m e l e n g t h h e r e s i n c e h e n o t o n l y c l e a r l y l i n k s t h e t w o b u ta l so b e c a u s e h e r e i n f o r c e s s o m e o f t h e e a r l ie r s t a t e m e n t s o n s y m b o l i s mb y e v o k i n g t he f a m i l i a r im a g e o f G o d a s th e a u t h o r o f th e b o o k o f n a tu r ew h i c h o n l y n e e d s t o b e r e a d a n d ( c o r r e c t l y ) in t e r p r e te d . I n t h e H e x a e m e r o nh e w r i t e s :W e have sp oken about the widowhood of birds and that virtue arose from them first ; nowlet us speak of chastity which also is proved definitely to dwell in m any birds, that can b eperceived in vultures. Indeed vultures are denied to indulge in coition, and conjugals (sic)by a certain practice and n uptial bond s engaged in by chance, and th us without any m atethey conceive by seed and generate without conjunction, and the offsprings of these becauseof their longevity reach a great age so that up to a hundred years of life a succession ofthem is produced, and they do not die easily o f needy old age . W hat say those who areaccustomed to smile at our mysteries when they hear that a virgin may generate and dothey esteem impossible bearing by an unmarried girl whose modesty no custom of manviolates? Is that thing thought impossible in the M other of God w hich is not denied to bepossible in vultures? A bird bears without a m ate and n on e confutes it , and because M arybore when betrothed they question her chastity. Do we not perceive that the Lord sentbeforehand m any exam ples from nature itself by w hich incarnations he proved the virtueof the suspected one and ad ded truth (to the stor y))8S i m i l a r id e a s a b o u t th e t h e m a t i c l i n k w i th t h e i m m a c u l a t e c o n c e p t i o n w e r ee x p r e s s e d b y L a c t a n t i u s a n d S t. A u g u s t i n e w i t h r e s p e c t t o m a r e s , b y O r i g e n ,E u s e b i u s , a n d S t . B a s i l a b o u t v u l t u r e s a n d i n t h e s o - c a l l e d R e c o g n i t i o n so f C l e m e n t a b o u t h e n s . 39 O t h e r a n i m a l s w h i c h w e r e t h o u g h t t o c o n c e i v ew i t h o u t s e x u a l i n t e r c o u r s e a r e t h e p a r tr i d g e a n d b e e s . B o t h o f t h o s e a r e


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Bestiaries 4 8 9d i s c u s s e d i n t h e M i d d l e S c o t s h e r a l d i c b e s t i a r y a l r e a d y r e f e r r e d t o a n d i nb o t h i n s t a n c e s t h e d e s c r i p t i o n s f o u n d i n B r u n e t t o L a t i n i ' s e n c y c l o p a e d i a a r ef o l l o w e d c l o s e l y . P a r tr i d g e s , i t i s c l a i m e d , a r e s o le c h e r o u s t h a t ' s u m s a isq u h e n 19e f a m e l l h a s h a t e w i l s c h o c o n s a v i s a l a n e r l y o f 19e w y n d l~ at s t r ik i sh i r t i l h i r m a l e ' , a n d b e e s a r e s a i d t o b e b e g o t t e n b y t h e f l e s h o f a d e a dc a l f w h e n t h e b l o o d i s ro t t en , a n d w a s p s b y t h a t o f a d e a d m u l e . 4 T h ep a r t r i d g e is a l s o o n e o f th e a n i m a l s a s s o c i a t e d w i t h h o m o s e x u a l i t y .A c c o r d i n g t o G u i l l a u m e l e C l e r c ' i t is no t c l e a r / B u t i s b o t h d i r t y a n dm i s c h i e v o u s , / A n d h a s a v e r y b a d h a b i t, / F o r m a l e m a t e s w i t h m a l e ;S o h o t i s t h e i r d e s i r e / T h a t t h e y f o r g e t t h e l a w o f n a t u r e . T M T h i s i s e c h o e di n m o s t b e s t ia r i e s a n d t h e Deidis of Armorie. 42 T h e s e x u a l i n c l i n a t i o no f th e p a r t r i d g e w a s s u c h a w e l l - k n o w n f a c t t h a t i t m a d e i ts w a y i n toh e r a l d r y : N i c h o l a s U p t o n i n h i s De studio mtlitari r e f e r s t o t h e t h r e ep a r t r i d g e s g i v e n b y t h e E a r l o f S a l i s b u r y t o ' a c e r t a in g e n t y l m a n ' f o r h isb r a v e r y i n th e f i e ld o f b a t t l e i n F r a n c e , w h i c h n e v e r t h e l e s s s i g n i fi e d ' t h ef y r s t b e r a r t o b e a g r e t l y a r o r a s o d o m y t e ' . 43 A u t o g e n e s i s is a l so ac h a r a c t e r i st i c o f s n a k e s ( e n g e n d e r e d f r o m t h e s p i n e s o f c o r p s e s ) , l i c e ( f r o mi n f e c t e d a i r) , g r a s s h o p p e r s , f r o g s , m i c e a n d e e l s ( a ll f r o m m u d ) . 44 T h i s n o t i o nh a s a n a n c i e n t h i s t o r y a n d i n th e c a s e o f t h e b e e s w o u l d a p p e a r to h a v ea n I n d o - E u r o p e a n o r i g in r a t h e r t h a n a s e m i t ic o n e a s h a s b e e n s u g g e s t e d . 45G u b e r n a t i s e x p l a i n s t h e u n d e r l y i n g s y m b o l i s m o f t h e b e e s a s f o l l o w s :According to Porphyrios the mo on (Selene) w as also called a bee (M elissa). SelSn~ wasrepresented dra wn by two w hite horses or two cows; the horn of these cow s seems tocorrespond to the sting of the bee. The souls of the dead were supposed to come downfrom the m oon upon the earth in the forms o f bees. Porphyrios a dd s that, as the moon isthe culminating point of the constellation of the bu ll (as a bull herself), i t is believed thatbees are born in the bull 's carcase. Hence the na m e of bougeneis given by the ancients tobees. Dionysos (the moon), after having been torn to pieces in the form o f a b ull, was bornagain, according to those who were initiated in the Dionysian mysteries, in the form of abee; h enc e the nam e of Bo ugen~s also given to Dionysos, according to Plutarch.46

L a d n e r a l so n o t e s th a t ' t h e s y m b o l i c w o r l d v i e w o f th e M i d d le A g e sc a n n o t b e u n d e r s t o o d w i t h o u t r e f e r e n c e t o a s a c r e d h i s to r y w h i c h w a sc o n c e i v e d a s a c o h e r e n t s e q u e n c e o f d i v i n e l y p l a n n e d h a p p e n i n g s , f r o mc r e a t i o n t h r o u g h t h e e v e n t s o f t h e O l d a n d N e w T e s t a m e n t s a n d t h es a l v a t i o n - o r i e n t e d p r o g r e s s i o n o f m a n k i n d . '47 M e d i e v a l r e l i g i o n a n dt h e o l o g y h a v e l e f t c l e a r m a r k s o n a n i m a l l o r e a n d l e g e n d . T h e B i b l ev i r t u a l l y s ta r ts w i t h t h e c r e a t i o n o f t h e a n i m a l s , a n d A d a m n a m i n g t h ea n i m a l s b e c a m e a p o p u l a r t o p i c f o r m e d i e v a l i l lu s t ra t o rs a n d o c c u p i e s as e p a r a t e c h a p t e r i n s o m e o f t h e b e s t i a r i e s ; 4s t h is n a m i n g a l s o a s s e r t e dm a n ' s a u t h o r i t y o v e r b ea s ts . B i b l ic a l s y m b o l i s m o f t e n s u p e r i m p o s e s i t s e lfo n t h a t o f a n i m a l s : t h u s t h e s t o r y o f t h e e l e p h a n t ' s c h a s t i t y a n d s u b s e -q u e n t s e d u c t i o n a f t e r e a t i n g o f th e m a n d r a k e i s c l o s e l y t a i l o r e d o n t h a to f A d a m a n d E v e a n d th e T r e e o f K n o w l e d g e , a s t he b e s t ia r ie s m a k ea b u n d a n t l y c l e a r :


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4 9 0 L.A.J.R. HouwenN o w t h e E l e p h a n t a n d h is w i f e r e p r e s e n t A d a m a n d E v e . F o r w h e n t h e y w e r e p l e a s in g t o G o d ,b e f o r e t h e i r p r o v o c a t i o n o f t h e f le s h , t h e y k n e w n o t h i n g a b o u t c o p u l a t io n n o r h a d t h e yk n o w l e d g e o f s i n . W h e n , h o w e v e r , t h e w i fe a t e o f th e T r e e o f K n o w l e d g e , w h i c h i s w h a tt h e M a n d r a g o r a [ m a n d r a k e ] m e a n s , a n d g a v e o n e o f i t s f r u i t s t o h e r m a n , s h e w a s i m m e d i -a t e l y m a d e a w a n d e r e r a n d t h e y h a d t o c l e a r o u t o f P a r a d i s e o n a c c o u n t o f i t. 49

One of the areas in which animals were employed in a religious contextis that of the vices and virtues. Many animals in the bestiaries and relatedworks illustrate lasciviousness but there are also some that are themati-cally linked by their abhorrence of the sexual act. They were therefore oftenused as illustrations of the virtues of purity and chastity. The horns of theantelope, for example, were thought to symbolise the 'Old and NewTestaments or the virtues of abstinence and obedience' .50 The chapter onthe elephant in the bestiary opens with the remark that it has no desire tocopulate. 51 The beaver (castor) castrates himself when pursued by the hunterand if he is chased again by another hunter he will throw himself on hisback and show his pursuer the uselessness of his endeavour; in the bestiariesthis episode is almost invariably followed by a homily on chastity)2 Theturtledove, according to Guillaume le Clerc, after losing its mate, 'stayschaste/And keeps all her life/Loyal to her mate', a sentiment which isechoed by Chaucer in the Parliament of Fowls and by many other medievalauthors9 The tortoise, like the elephant, is extremely reluctant to involveherself in the sex act, but perhaps this is a slightly different case, sinceshe had good reason to, as Vincenzo Cartari explains in the sixteenthcentury:T h e t o r t o is e k n o w s t h e d a n g e r t h a t s h e fa c e s , w h e n s h e j o i n s h e r s e l f w i th t h e m a l e ; s h em u s t t u r n h e r s e l f u p s i d e d o w n w i t h h e r b e l ly o n t o p a n d t h e m a l e , a f t e r c o m p l e t i n g t h e s e xa c t , g o e s h i s o w n w a y a n d l e a v e s h e r t h e r e . S h e c a n n o t tu r n h e r s e l f u p r i g h t b y h e r s e l f, a n di s l e f t a p r ey fo r o t h e r a n i m a l s , t h e eag l e i n p a r t i cu l a r . 54

Among the vices one of the most popular is surely avarice, and thegreed of the mouse was proverbial. According to Rabanus Maurus 'micesignify men who in their breathless eagerness for earthly gains filch theirbooty from another's store. 55 Other animals mentioned in one breath withavarice are the bear (Bruyn's greed lands him in a great deal of trouble inThe History of Reynard), the griffin, guarding its hoard of gold in Asia,and a host of other animals, not least among them the hawk, falcon andhorse, which accompany Avarice in Gower's Mirour de l 'o mme . 56 In theGesta romanorum lions are equated with pride, foxes with fraud and goatswith stinking lechery.57Of course animals could function both in partem bonam and in malamand therefore often carry two or more mutually exclusive types of sym-bolism. A case in point is the otter, which could function as a type ofChrist or the Devil, or the boar who represented both sloth (drawing thechariot of poverty in an allegory by Holbein) and industry/work (by the


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Bestiaries 491emblem writers such as Valeriano and Ripa). 58 One gets the impressionthat almost any animal could symbolise Christ: the centaur, the eagle, theelephant, the griffin, the hart, the lamb, the lion, the lynx, the otter, thepelican, the phoenix, and the unicorn. This use of different animalssymbolising one and the same thing or person (like Christ) allows the authorto vary his images without necessarily varying the symbolism. At a moresubtle level, it also lets him emphasise and highlight one and the same thingfrom widely different perspectives. If the lion and the phoenix conjure upimages of the Resurrection (and in the case of the lion that of the Lion ofJ u d a h ) , 59 the elephant and unicorn would have reminded a medieval audienceof the Passion in what are clearly parallel stories. The account of how theunicorn may be captured by a virgin is a familiar one, but it is perhapsnot so well-known that in the Gesta romanorum an elephant is capturedin the same way, not by one, but by two (naked) virgins whom the emperorsends into the forest; one carries a basin, the other, a sword. The elephant,attracted by their song, licks the breasts of one of them and then fallsasleep in her lap; the other takes her sword and kills him, after which thefirst maiden fills her bowl with the blood shed by the elephant. Accordingto the signification, the emperor is God the Father, the elephant Christ,the two virgins are Mary and Eve, and the breasts the Old and NewTestaments. 6

Animals are also associated with the Evangelists, three of whom havethem as their emblems. Durandus links Mark with the lion that roars inthe desert because he deals with the Resurrection, Luke with the ox becausethe ox is an animal fit for sacrifice and his Gospel deals with the Passion,and John with the eagle because it flies highest of all birds (another detailfrom the bestiaries) and he deals with Christ's Divinity.6~

Saints belong to yet another category of people which are often asso-ciated or linked to animals (St. Francis; St. Cuthbert, etc.) Sometimesdifferent saints are associated with one and the same animal as St. Christina,St. Margaret, St. Paul, and St. Eugenia, who are all associated with theserpent in various disguises in the Scottish Legends of the Saints. 62 It isin saints's legends, moreover, that the motif of the gift-bearing animal isoften found. In the anonymous life of St. Cuthbert there is a reference topenitent ravens (or crows), banned from the island by Cuthbert but allowedto return, which they do gratefully, bearing a little gift of swine lard. 63 Asimilar tale is told by Sulpicius Severus about the lioness who presented theanchorite who cured her five blind cubs with the skin of a rare animal. 64In a secular context the motif of the grateful animal is related about thestork in the Deidis of Armorie. The bird was rescued by a monk fromgourmands who would have eaten her; when the migration periodapproached the monk tells her she is free to go but asks her to come andvisit him should she ever return to these parts. And so she does; on returningto the monastery she calls out for him. When the monk appears he isrewarded for his past hospitality with a precious stone which the stork


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492 L.A.J.R. Houwencasts into his lap. Obviously, the monks were astonished at this and thoughtit a miracle so they immediately placed this 'rycht worthi and precious'stone among their relics. 65 This account goes back to a story by Aelian,where one Heraclei's looked after a stork with a broken l e g . 66 Whereas thegift-bearing animal may, like the story of the stork as told by Aelian, illus-trate that animals can remember and be grateful,67 when it is re-told in aheraldic bestiary of the later Middle Ages in terms of monks and their relicsit is raised to a higher plane where it is easy to imagine that the wholeevent is controlled by the hand of God and the narrative thus reinforcesthe idea of a well-ordered and just world. We have already seen how theVirgin Mary was associated with a mare, a vulture or a hen and it wasMark who saw the dove as a type of the Holy Ghost when it descendedupon Christ at his baptism. 68 In fact, the associat ion between birds (orbees) and the soul or spirit of men was an ancient and a common one,both in art and literature. 69

As the above shows certain types of animals and the symbolism asso-ciated with them feature quite prominently in medieval literature, often toillustrate particular moral, political or religious points. That this shouldbe so is not very surprising in view of the medieval theocentric worldview in which the animals ranked below humans and could therefore beused in any way man though best. This type of didacticism eventually ledto such a hateful work as The D ialoges o f C reatures M oralysed in whichthe sole purpose of many of the moralizations seems to be to keep peoplein their place. Obviously animals are not used exclusively for suchpolitical motives. More often than not they are employed in a moral contextreminding one of one of the virtues or warning one against any of the SevenDeadly Sins. They could also be utilised to illustrate such theologicaldoctrines as the virgin birth of Christ, the Passion (elephant, unicorn) andthe Resurrection (phoenix); and just as the Old Testament was thought toforeshadow the New, as exemplified by the two horns of the antelope, soanimals could be used as types (Christ, Mary, Adam, Eve) or emblems(Evangelists). Thus, in their own way, animals helped man to elucidate 'auniverse that was perceived as widely and deeply meaningful.'Department of EnglishUniversity o f G roningenGroningenThe Netherlands

L . A . J . R . H O U W E N

N o t e s1 . G . B . L a d n er , ' M e d i e v a l a n d M o d e r n U n d e r s t a n d i n g o f S y m b o l i s m : A C o m p a r i s o n ' ,

Speculum, 54 (1979) , 223-56 (p . 227) .2. The Middle English Physiologus, ed i t ed H . Wi r t j e s , EETS, OS 2 9 9 ( Lo n d o n , 1 9 9 1 ) ,p . lx ix .


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B e s t i a r i e s 4 9 33 . Qu o ted b y M.J . C u r l ey , Phys io logus (Austin, 1979), p. ii i .4 . F o r R i c h a r d d e F o u r n i v a l ' s bes t ia i r e d 'amour see L i Bes t ia i r es d 'Amour s d i Ma is t r e

R icha r t de For n iva l e l i Res pons e du Bes t ia ir e , ed i t ed C . Seg r e (M i lan - Nap le s , 1 9 57 ); f o ran En g l i sh t r an s la t io n see Jean e t t e B ee r , M as ter R ichar d ' s Bes t ia ry o f L ove and i ts Res pons e( B e r k e ley , 1 9 8 6) . Her a ld i c b es t ia r i e s a r e d i scu ssed a t so me wh a t g r ea t e r l en g th in my " H ar l ey6 1 4 9 , f f . 1 5 v - 4 2 : A S c o t s T r a n s l a t io n o f a M i d d l e F r e n c h B e s t i a r y ' , S tud ies in Sco t t i s hL anguage and L i t e r a tu r e , 2 6 ( 1 9 9 1 ) , 2 0 7 - 1 7 .

5 . Fo r th is tex t see Med ieval Heraldry, edi ted E.J . Jones (Card if f : p r ivate ly pr in ted , 1943),p p . 9 5 - 1 4 3 ; a M i d d l e E n g l i s h t ra n s l a t i o n o f t h e T r a c t a t u s d e a r m i s i s e x t a n t i n B o d l e yL a u d M i s c . 7 3 3 .

6 . Jo n es , p . 1 6 7 ( La t in tex t f r o m B L, Ad d . M S. 2 8 79 1 ), f o r Jo n es ' s t r an s l a tio n s o f th eW elsh t ex t , u sed h e r e , see p p . 3 7 - 3 9 ; Ne ck a m r e l a t e s th e s to r y in b o o k 1 , ch ap te r 2 5 o f D enatur is rerum, ed i t ed T . Wr ig h t , R o i l s Se r i e s 3 4 ( Lo n d o n , 1 8 6 3 ) , p p . 7 6 - 7 7 .

7 . M y e d i t i o n o f t h e D e i d i s o f A r m o r i e : A F i f t e e n t h - C e n t u r y H e r a l d i c M a n u a l a n dBes t ia r y wi l l sh o r t ly b e p u b l i sh ed b y th e S co t t i sh Tex t So c ie ty . Fo r an ed i t io n o f t h e b es t i a ryp a r t o f t h e F r en c h s o u r c e o f th i s S c o t t is h t e x t s e e L .A . J . R . H o u w e n a n d P . E l e y , ' A F i f t e e n th -C e n t u r y F r e n c h H e r a l d i c B e s t i a r y ' , Z e i t s c h r i f t f i i r R o m a n i s c h e P h i l o l o g ie , 108 (1992) ,4 6 0 - 5 1 4 .

8. Deid is , I1. 8 4 0 - 4 9 . Th e n o n - h e r a ld i c p a r t o f t h e s to r y i s t o ld b y S o l in u s ( 1 5 .2 2 ) f o rw h i c h s e e C. I v l i i So l in i . Co l l ec tanea r er vm memor ab i l i vm, e d i t e d T h . M o m m s e n ( B e r l i n ,1 8 6 4 ) , p . 9 7 an d Go ld in g ' s s ix t een th - cen tu r y t r an s l a t io n T h e E x c e l l e n t a n d P l e a s a n t W o r k eCo l lec tanea r er um mem or ab i l ium o f Ca ius Ju l iu s So l inus t r ans la ted f r o m the L a t in (1587)by Ar thur Go ld ing , ed i t ed G . Ki sh ( Ga in esv i l l e , 1 9 5 5 ), s ig . N . i i i . I t i s a l so r e l a t ed b y A e l i anin his On the C haracter is tics o f Anim als , t ransla ted A.F. Scholf ie ld , 3 vo ls . (London, 1958-59) ,I , 241.

9 . T he His to r y o f Reynar d the Fox , ed i t ed N .F . B lak e , EETS, OS 2 6 3 ( Lo n d o n , 1 9 7 0 ) ,p. 52, 11. 26-34.

1 0 . C o m p ar e , f o r ex amp le , t h e Mid d le En g l i sh b es t i ar y : ' L i s tn e b n u a wu n d er b a t t is d e rd o b f o r h u n g e r . / Go b o f e ld e to a f u r g an d f a l l eb b a r in n e , / i n e r i ed lo n d e r i n e r b ch in e ,f o r to b i li r t en f u g e le s . /N e s te reb g e n o g t o f b e s t ed e a g o d s tu n d d e le s /o c d a rec5 so g e t i edw e r e . N e d r a g e b g e n o n o n d e . / t g e r a u e n i s s w i b e r e d i , w e n e b b a t g e r o t i e b , / a n d o b r e f u l e sh i r e f a l l en b i f o r t o win n en f o d e , / d e r f l ik e , w ib u ten d r ed : h e wen en b a t g e d ed beb . / H eb i l l e n o n / ~ i s f o x e s f e l a n d g e i t w e l f e l e ~ . / L i g t l i k e g e l e p e b u p a n d l e t t e b h e m s o n e . / G e l th em h e r e b i l l i n g / r ab e w ib i l l i n g J t e to g g eb an d t e t i r eb h em m id h i r e t e~ sa rp e . / F r e t h i ref i l l e / an d g o b b an h e r g e w i l l e , ' B Bes t iar io Medio Inglese , ed i t ed D . Fa r ac i ( L ' Aq u i l a ,1990), 11. 289-303.11 . K. Var ty , Reynar d the Fox: A S tudy o f the Fox in Med ieva l .Eng l i s h Ar t ( Le ices t e r ,1 9 6 7 ) , p . 9 1 ; f o r an o th e r b es t i a r y wh ich u ses th e p r o p e r n ame in p a r t , see th e sh o r t v e r s io no f P i e rr e d e B e a u v a i s ' b e s t i a ry , w h e r e t h e c h a p t e r o n t h e fo x i s e n t it l e d ' D o u R e n a r t ' : AM edieval Bo ok o f Beas ts : Pierre de Beau vais ' s bes tiary , ed i t ed an d t r an s la t ed Gu y R , M er m ie r(Lampeter , 1992) , p . 259 .

12 . Deid i s , l l. 1 1 4 1 - 4 2 . Th e d e ta i l ab o u t t h e f r i en d sh ip b e tween th e f o x an d th e r av eng o es b ack a t l ea s t a s f a r a s Ae l i an ' s On the Char ac ter i s t ic s o f An im a ls , I , 151.

13 . Var ty , p . 91 .1 4 . See So l in u s (2 0 .7 ) wh ich Ar th u r Go ld in g ( C ap . XX XI I ) t r an sl a t e s a s: ' O v e r ag a in s t

G e r m a n i e i s t h e I l a n d e S c a n d i n a u i a , w h i c h b r e e d e t h a b e a s t m u c h r e s e m b l i n g a n A l c e ,wh ich l ik e y Ol ip h an t b o w e th n o t t h e n e th e r io y n te s o f h i s l eg s , an d th e r e f o r e ly e th n o t d o w n ew h e n h e s l e e p e t h , b u t r e s t e t h h i m s e l f e w h e n h e i s d r o w s i e , a g a i n s t a T r e e , t h e w h i c h i ssawn e a lmo s t a su n d e r , r ead y to f a l l , t h a t wh en th e b eas t l ean e th to h i s accu s to med s t a i e ,h e ma y f a l l d o wn e : an d so i s h ee cau g h t , f o r o th e r wise i t is a h a r d ma t t e r t o ca tch h y m b yh an d . Fo r a l th o u g h h y s io y n t s b e so s t i f l e , y e t i s h e o f i n co mp ar ab le swi f tn esse . ' So l in u s ' sso u r ce c l ea r ly was P l in y , wh o h as th e same s to r y ab o u t th e ' a ch l i s ' , i d en t i f i ed t en ta t iv e lyb y t h e e d i t o r w i t h t h e m o o s e o r r e i n d e e r : P l i n y , Natur a l His to r y , ed i t ed an d t r an s l a t ed H .Rac kham , 10 Vo ls . (Lon don, 1983), I I I , 30 .


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4 9 4 L.A.J.R. Houwen1 5. ' A S e r p e n t , w h i c h th a t A s p i d i s / I s c l e p ed , o f h i s k y n d e h a th t h i s , / T h a t h e th e S t o n

n o b l e s t o f a l l e , / T h e w h i c h t h a t m e n C a r b u n c l e c a l l e , / B e r t h i n h i s h e d a b o v e o n h e i h t e . /F o r w h i c h w h a n t h at a m a n b e s l e y h t e , / T h e S t o n t o w i n n e a n d h i m t o d a u n t e , / W i t h h i s c a re c t eh i m w o l d e e n c h a u n t e , / A n o n a s h e p er c e iv e t h t h a t , / H e l ei th d o u n h is o n E r e a l p l a t / U n t oth e g r o u n d , an d h a l t i t f a s t e , /An d ek th a t o th e r E r e a l s f a s t e ! He s to p p e th wi th h i s t a i l sos o r e , / T h a t h e t h e w o r de s l a ss e o r m o r e / O f h is e n c h a n te m e n t n e h i e r e t h ; / A n d i n th is w i s eh ims e l f h e sk ie r e th , /S o th at h e h a th th e wo r d es wey v e d /A n d th u r g h h i s E r e i s n o g h t d ece iv ed . 'The English Works of John Gower, ed i t ed G .C . Macau lay , EET S, ES 8 1 , 82 , 2 v o l s . ( Lo n d o n ,1 9 0 0 - 1 9 0 1 ) , I , 4 8 - 4 9 .

16. The Dialoges of Creatures Moralysed, e d i t e d G . K r a t z m a n n a n d E . G e e ( L e i d e n ,1988) , pp . 94-95 .

17. Ancrene Riwle, ed i t ed M. Day , EE TS , OS 2 2 5 ( Lo n d o n , 1 9 52 ), p p . 5 9 - 6 0 , 11. 2 9 - 6 .1 8 . A lb e r tu s M ag n u s , Man and the Beasts (De Animalibus, books 22-26), ed i t ed an d

t r an s l a t ed J . J . Scan lan ( B in g h a mto n , 1 9 87 ), p . 1 9 4 . Th e u se o f t h i s s to n e to en h an c ef e r t i l i ty i s c lo se ly p a r a l l e l ed b y th e u se o f t h e man d r ak e , wh ich i s d i scu ssed b e lo w.19. The Book of Beasts, t r an s l a t ed T .H . W h i t e ( Ne w Yo r k , 1 9 5 4 ; r ep r in t ed 1 9 84 ),

p. 32.20 . Albe r tus Ma gnus, bk . 22 , ch . 66 , ed . Scan lan , p. 156 .21 . Se e Faraci , 11. 31 -55 and p la te 2 ( fac ing p . 32) and cf . Cu r ley , p . 12 .2 2 . See Deidis, 11. 1203-14 and a lso White , p . 125 and Cur ley , p . 13 .2 3 . See Deidis, 11. 1 7 2 6 - 3 1 , wh ich f o l lo ws B r u n e t to La t in i c lo se ly : Li livres dou tresor,

edi ted F.J . Carmody (Berkeley , 1948) , p . 135 , 11 . 1 -5 .2 4 . As d i scu ssed b y W h i t e , p . 1 6 9 n . See a l so B . R o w lan d , Animals with Human Faces:A Guide to Animal Symbolism ( Kn o x v i l l e , 1 9 7 3 ) , p p . 2 8 - 2 9 .2 5 . F . M cC u l lo ch , Mediaeval Latin and French Bestiaries (Cha pel H i l l , 19602) , p . 92 .2 6 . F o r w h a t f o l l o w s i n th i s p a r a g r a p h I a m i n d e b t e d t o F . N . M . D i e k s t r a , ' T h ePhysiologus, t h e B e s t i ar i e s a n d M e d i e v a l A n i m a l L o r e ' , Neophilologus, 69 (1985) , 142-55 .27~ ' A l i i d i cu n t mu tes q u o d ex h u m o r e t e r rae n ascan tu r ; n am m u s t e rr a , u n d e e t h u m u s . '

I s id o r e , Etymologiae XII, edi ted J . Andr6 (Par is , 1986) , 12 .3 .1 . The same c la im is found inS t . B as i l ' s h o mi ly 9 , sec t io n 2 , o n th e Hexaemeron.

2 8 . K . Th o m as , Man and the Natural World ( Har mo n d swo r th , 1 9 83 ), p p . 4 0 - 4 1 .29. The Christian Man's Closet, t r a n sl . W i l l i a m L o w t h ( 1 5 8 1 ); q u o t e d b y T h o m a s ,

p. 38.3 0 . C o m p a r e f o r e x a m p l e I s i d o r e , Etymologiarvm, ed . An d r 6 , 1 2 .1 .1 4 an d On the

Properties of Things. John Trevisa' s translation of 'Bartholomaeus Anglicus De ProprietatibusRerum', e d i t e d M . C . S e y m o u r , et al., 3 vols . (Ox ford , 1 975-8 8) , I I , 1208 -09 , 11. 32 -1 : 'Hisk y n d e i s mo s t h o o t i n so m o ch e l~at h i s h o o te b lo o d n e is she l~ an d k e ru e l~ l~e h a r d ad aman ts to o n l~at n o ul~e r f u y r e n o ul~er ir e m ay o u e r co me . . . ' ; f o r Go we r , see The Works of JohnGower, Vo l . I ( Th e Fr en ch W o r k s ) , ed i t ed G .C . M acau lay ( Ox f o r d , 1 8 99 ), 11. 9 2 5 - 3 6 ; f o r am o d e r n E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n , s e e Mirour de l'omme (The Mirror of Mankind), t r an s l a t edW .B . Wi l so n ( Eas t Lan s in g , 1 9 9 2) , p . 1 6 .

3 1 . R o b e r t M a n n y n g o f B r u n n e , Handlyng Synne, ed i t ed L Su l l en s (B in g h am to n , 1 9 83 ),pp . 20 0-0 1 , 11. 798 1-82 .

3 2 . English Lyrics of the Xlllth Century, edi te d C. Bro wn (O xford , 1932) , p . 152 , 11.1 1 - 1 2 . Fo r a mo r e g en e r a l d i scu ss io n see R o wlan d , p p . 1 0 8- 09 ~ f o r a mo r e sp ec i f i c o n e o nth e an a lo g y h o r se - wi f e /wo m an - f l e sh , see D .W. R o b er t so n J r . , A Preface to Chaucer (Princeton,1962) , pp . 253-55 .

33 . Ro w land , p . 10 .3 4 . Sir Thomas Browne's 'Pseudodoxia Epidemica', ed i t ed R . R o b b in s , 2 v o l s . ( Ox f o r d ,1981), I. 164, 11. 11-16.

35 . W hite , p . 25 n . 2 .3 6 . Ibid., p. 10.37. Se ym ou r, II , 1212, 11, 1-4 .


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Bestiaries 4 9 53 8. F o r a n a e m o p h i l o u s a n i m a l s a n d S t . A m b r o s e ' s q u o t e s e e C . Z i r c l e , ' A n i m a l s

I m p r e g n a t e d b y t h e W i n d ' , Isis, 25 (1936) , pp . 96 , 98 , 107 .39 . Zirc le , p . 112 .4 0 . Deidis, 1 1 . 1 4 1 8 - 1 9 an d 1 3 5 8 - 6 2 . See a l so C ar mo d y , Li livres dou tresor, p. 151,ll . 5-7 and p. 142, 11. 8-12.4 1 . The Bestiary of Guillaume le Clerc Originally written in 1210-11, t r an s l a t ed G .C .

D ruce (A shford , 1936), 11. 234 9-54 .42 . Cf . W hite , p . 137 and Deidis, 11. 1414-18.4 3 . Jo h n B lo u n t ' s t r an sl a t io n a s q u o ted b y R . Den n y s , The Heraldic Imagination ( Lo n d o n ,

1975) , p . 50 . Cf . a lso M. Keen , Chivalry ( N e w H a v e n , 1 9 84 ), p p . 1 3 0 - 3 I .4 4 . Fo r th e f ir s t two see Diek s t r a , p . 1 4 8, t h e l a s t f o u r a r e men t io n ed b y S t . B as i l i n

h o mi ly 9 , sec t io n 2 o n th e Hexaemeron.45. Diek st ra , p . 144 .4 6 . A . d e Gu b er n a t i s , Zoological Mythology or The Legends of Animals, 2 v o l s . ( Lo n d o n ,1872), II , 217.4 7 . ' M e d i e v a l a n d M o d e r n U n d e r s t a n d in g o f S y m b o l i s m ' , p p . 2 3 0 - 3 1 .4 8 . See Ab er d e en Un iv e r s i ty L ib r a r y , MS 2 4 , f . 5 ; co m p ar e a l so th e i ll u s t r a tio n in Ha r l ey

3 2 4 4 , r ep r o d u ced b y Wh i t e in th e sec t io n o n Ad am n amin g th e an ima l s ( p p . 7 0 - 7 2 ) .4 9 . W h i t e , p . 2 7 . Al so n o te th e f o l lo w in g acco u n t b y Ib n A1 -War di ( c . 1 34 0 ) wh o , i n

h i s d e s c r ip t i o n o f t h e I s la n d o f W o m e n , n o t e s t h at i t i s re l a t e d ' t h a t t he w o m e n c o n c e i v eb y th e win d . Wh e n th ey h av e b eco me p r eg n an t t h ey g iv e b i r th to ( f ema les ) l i k e th emse lv es .Some people claim that in this isle there is a kind of tree whose (fruit) makes (the women)conceive when they eat it' ( s e e Z i r c l e , ' A n i m a l s I m p r e g n a t e d b y th e W i n d ' , p . 1 21 ; m ye m p h a s i s ) . T h e r e a r e g o o d g r o u n d s f o r a s s u m i n g t h a t h e r e t h e m a n d r a k e i s r e f e r r e d t o , ap l a n t w h i c h s i n c e b i b li c a l t im e s h a d h a d a r e p u t a ti o n f o r p r o m o t i n g c o n c e p t i o n ( c f . G e n .3 0 : 1 4 - 1 6 ) .

5 0 . Th e r e f e r en ce to th e two Tes tam en t s i s f o u n d a s ea rly a s th e Physiologus, f o r wh ichs e e C a r m o d y , Physiologus Latinus. Editions pr~liminaires versio B (Paris, 1939), p. 13: 'cuius[ a n t e l o p e ' s ] d u o c o r n u a s u n t d u o t e s t a m e n t a ' a n d t h u s m a d e i t s w a y i n t o t h e F r e n c h a n dL a t i n b e s t i a r i e s . I n t h e F r e n c h b e s t i a r y o f G e r v a i s e t h e t w o h o r n s a r e e q u a t e d w i t h t h ev i r tu es o f ab s t in en ce an d o b ed ien ce , see E . L in d sey , ' M ed iev a l F r en ch B es t i a r i e s ' ( u n p u b -l ished Ph .D. d isse r ta t ion , Un ive rs i ty of Hu l l , 1976), p . 134 .

51 . W hite , p . 24 .5 2. S e e f o r e x a m p l e P i e rr e d e B e a u v a is , w h o c o n c l u d e s t ha t ' t h o s e w h o w a n t t o o b e y

G o d ' s c o m m a n d m e n t s a n d l i v e c h a s t e l y . . , m u s t c u t o f f t h e ir o w n g e n i ta l s , t h a t i s t o s a ya l l t h e i r v i c e s a n d t h e y m u s t c a s t a l l b a d d e e d s i n t h e h u n t e r ' s f a c e , t h e l a t t e r b e i n g t h ed ev i l wh o i s co n s tan t ly ch as in g ' (A Medieval Book of Beasts, ed . & t r . Mermier , p . 95) .

5 3. F o r G u i l l a u m e , s e e D r u c e , 11, 2 6 6 9 - 7 4 . I n C h a u c e r ' s Parliament of Fowls th et u r t le - d o v e e x c l a i m s : ' " N a y , G o d f o rb e d e a lo v e r e s h u ld e c h a u n g e ! ' / T h e t u r tl e s e y de , a n dw e x f o r s h a m e a l r e d , / " T h o u g h t h a t h i s l a d y e v e r e m o r e b e s t ra u n g e . / Y i t l a t h y ms e r v e h ir e e v e r , ti l he b e d e d . / F o r s o t h e , I p r e y s e n a t t h e g o s e s r e d ; / ' F o r , t h o u g h s h e d e y e d e ,I w o l d e n o n o t h e r m a k e ; / I w o l b e n h i re s , t i l th a t t h e d e t h m e t a k e . . .. (Riverside edition, I1.5 8 2 - 8 8 ) .

5 4. Q u o t e d f r o m J . M u l r y a n , ' T h e T o r t o i s e an d t h e L a d y i n V i n c e n z o C a r t a r i' s lmaginia n d J o h n W e b s t e r ' s The White Devil', Notes and Queries, 38 (1991) , p . 78 .

5 5 . ' M y s t i c e au tem in u r es s ig n i f i can t h o m in es cu p id i t a t e t e r r en a in h ian te s e t p r aed amd e a l i en a su b s tan t i a su r r ip i en te s ' , q u o ted an d t r an s l a t ed b y R o wlan d , p . 1 2 9 .

5 6 . See M acau la y , 11. 9 0 1 - 1 2 an d W. B lo o mf ie ld , The Seven Deadly Sins ( M i c h i g a n ,1956), p. 195.5 7 . ' L y o u n s b e p r i de , F o x e s b e f r a u d e . . . G e t e b e st y n k e o f l e c h e r y ' , The Early EnglishVersions of the Gesta Romanorum, ed i t ed S . J .H . Her r t ag e , EETS, ES 3 3 ( Lo n d o n , 1 8 7 9 ) ,p . 3 7 3. I n th e f ab le s o f Od o o f C h e r i to n th e same s to r y an d sy m b o l i sm i s f o u n d : The Fablesof Odo of Cheriton, t ransla ted John J . Jacobs (Syracuse , 1985) , 119 ( fab le no . 64) .


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4 9 6 L.A.J.R. Houwen5 8 . R o w lan d , p p . 1 29 , 4 8 .5 9 . T h e i d e a o f th e R e s u r r e c t i o n i s b a s e d o n t h e s t o r y o f t h e l i o n b re a t h i n g l i f e in t o

h i s d e a d c u b . T h e l i o n w a s a l s o t h e s y m b o l o f th e t r i b e o f J u d a h ( G e n . 4 9 . 9 : ' J u d a h i s al i o n 's w h e l p . . . ' ~ o f w h i c h C h r i st w a s th e sc io n .6 0 . Gesta romanorum, edi ted H. Oester ley (Ber l in , 1872) , p . 457 , no . 115 .6 1 . T h i s i m a g e r y d e r i v e s f r o m S t . J e r o m e ' s i n t e r p re t a t io n o f E z e k . 1 .1 0: ' A n d a s fo r

th e l i k en ess o f t h e i r f aces : t h e r e was th e f ace o f a man , an d th e f ace o f a l i o n o n th e r ig h ts id e o f a l l t h e f o u r : an d th e f ace o f an o x , o n th e l e f t s id e o f a l l t h e f o u r : an d th e f ace o fan eag le o v e r a l l t h e f o u r . ' C f . a l so R ev . 4 .7 . Fo r Du r an d u s see h i s Symbolism of Churchesand Church Ornaments p . 4 6 , n. 3 7 ( q u o ted b y R o w lan d , p . 1 3 0) . C f . a l so S t. Au g u s t in e(De Civitate Dei, PL 4 1 , 3 9 5 ) , w h o i s q u o t e d in The Lanterne of Li3t, e d i t e d L .M . S w i n b u r n ,Ea r ly E n g l i s h Tex t So c ie ty ( Lo n d o n , 1 9 17 ). p . 2 4 , 11. 2 0 - 2 , t h e Cursor Mundi, 7 v o l s . ,ed i t ed R . Mo r r i s , Ea r ly En g l i sh Tex t So c ie ty OS 5 7 , 5 9 , 6 2 , 6 6 , 6 8 , 9 9 , 1 0 1 , 7 v o l s . ( Lo n d o n ,1874 -92) , 11. 213 19-3 0 , and The Sex Werkdays and Agis, ed i t ed L .A.J .R . Ho u wen ( Gr o n in g en ,1990), 11. 815-25.6 2 . Fo r th ese la s t f o u r see R . Sch e ib e , ' As p ec t s o f t h e Sn ak e in th e Legends of the Saints',in Bryght Lanternis: Essays on the Language and Literature of Medieval and RenaissanceScotland, ed i t ed J .D . M cC lu r e , M.R .G. Sp i l l e r ( Ab er d een , 1 9 89 ), p p . 6 7 - 8 9 .

6 3 . Two Lives of Saint Cuthbert, ed . B . C o lg r a v e (C am b r id g e , 1 9 40 ), p p . 1 0 0 - 0 3 .6 4 . Su lp ic iu s Sev e r u s , Dialogues in Writings, Fa th e r s o f t h e C h u r ch , v o l . 7 , t r an s l a t ed

B . M . P e e b l e s ( W a s h i n g t o n , 1 9 4 9 ), d i a l o g u e 1 , c h . 1 5 , p p . 1 8 1 - 8 2 ; s e e a l so C o l g r a v e , p .3 2 8 .

65. 11. 12 60 -72 .6 6 . ' A w o m a n f r o m T a r e n t u m b y t h e n a m e o f H e ra c le 'i s o n c e t o o k p it y o n a y o u n gs to r k wh ich h ad b r o k en o n e o f i ts l eg s . Sh e lo o k ed a f t e r t h e an ima l u n t i l i t h ad r eco v e r e d a f te rwh ich she se t i t f ree . A yea r la ter , in spr ing , the s tork re turned an d recog niz in g it s benefact resso p en ed i t s b i l l an d d i sg o r g ed a s to n e in to h e r l ap. H erac le 'f s w as to t a l ly am azed an d p u t t h es to n e away , o n ly to b e wo k en b y i t i n th e mid d le o f t h e n ig h t b ecau se i t sh o n e so b r ig h t lyi t l i t u p th e en t i r e h o u se ' (On the Characteristics of Animals, ed . Sch o l f i e ld , I I , 2 0 9 - 1 0 ) .

6 7 . Th e g r a t e f u l an ima l is a r eco g n i sed mo t i f , see S . Th o m p so n , Motif-Index of Folk-Literature ( He l s in k i , 1 9 3 2 - 3 5 ) , B . 3 6 0 .

68 . M k. 1 .10 .6 9 . Fo r b ees see De Gu b er n a t i s , II , 2 1 7.

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