By: Elena Butuzova, Arts, Design, and Media Studies Adjunct Librarian

Learn about the Medieval Folklore: Bestiaries and Monsters book display on the 6th floor of the Rosenthal Library!

Mermaids, unicorns, lions, cats, griffins, and other types of creatures adorned the books of the Middle Ages—often depicted within the ornamentation of letters or between the paragraphs of a book. The book display focuses on the medieval animal illustrations and attempts to expand the folklore of these creatures beyond the bestiary. The book of beasts (known as the bestiary) focused on animal images within the writing of a manuscript in order to highlight an allegorical message about the world, as well as to attribute physical characteristics to an animal that people in Europe may have not seen before (such as lions). Imaginative animals, such as the dragon, were a common motif in bestiaries; however, it is not clear if the medieval world truly believed in the existence of these creatures. Whether it was an exploration of the human imagination, the belief in a fantastical world, or a symbolic representation of the unknown, the bestiary exemplified the colorful and slightly peculiar qualities of medieval folklore.

                           

List of Books

• Bovey, Alixe. . University of Toronto Press, 2002. (ND3339.5 .B68 2002)
• Clark, Willene B, and Meradith T McMunn. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1989. (PA8275.B4 Z55 1989)
• Phillpotts, Beatrice. . 1st Ballantine books ed. Ballantine Books, 1980. (GR910 .P44 1980)
• Gibson, Walter S. . Praeger Publishers, 1973. (ND653 .B65 G52)
• Strickland, Debra Higgs. . Cambridge University Press, 1995. (PR275 .B47 H37 1995)
• Clark, Willene B. . Boydell, 2006. (PA8275 .B4 C53 2006)
• Benton, Janetta Rebold. . Abbeville Press, 1992. (N7660 .B38 1992)
• Cambridge University Library., and T. H White. . Capricorn books edition. G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1961. (B4 E5 1960)
• Clark, Kenneth. . W. Morrow, 1977. (N7660 .C55)
• Zamperini, Alessandra. . Thames & Hudson, 2008. (ND2755 .Z3513 2008)
• Link, Luther. . Harry N. Abrams, 1995. (N8140 .L56 1995)
• Benton, Janetta Rebold, and Katonah Museum of Art. . Katonah Museum of Art, 1994. (N5975 .B467 1994)
• Muchembled, Robert. . Seuil/Chronicle, 2004. (NX652 .D48 M8313 2004)
• Zuffi, Stefano. . Abrams, 2007. (ND1380 .Z84 2007)
• Borst, Arno. . University of Chicago Press, 1992. (CB351 .B5913 1992)
• Bard Graduate Center for Studies in the Decorative Arts, Design, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Peter Barnet, and Pete Dandridge. . Yale University Press, 2006. (NK8427 .B37 2006)
• Freeman, Margaret B. . Metropolitan Museum of Art : distributed by Dutton, 1976. (NK3049 .U5 N43 1976)
• Amor, Anne Clark. . Taplinger Pub. Co., 1975. (QL791 .C565 1975)
• Yapp, W. B. . Schocken Books, 1983. (ND3339 .Y36 1982)
• British Museum., and Frances Carey. . British Museum Press, 1999. (5 .A63 1999)
• Morris, Jan. . Thames and Hudson, 1982. (N7660 .M67 1982)
• Lehner, Ernst, and Johanna Lehner. . Dover Publications, 1971. (N8140 .L35)
• Princeton University. Department of Art and Archaeology. Index of Christian Art., and Colum Hourihane. . Edited by Colum Hourihane. Index of Christian Art, Dept. of Art and Archaeology, Princeton University in association with Princeton University Press, 2000. (N8012 .V57 V57 2000)