Bestiary (York, early 13th century)
A luxury book of beasts and morals—the sole survivor of a lost monastic library
The so-called York Bestiary is a firm favourite with library staff and visitors alike. Who can resist these charming, often humorous, and sometimes puzzling illustrations, set off by a dazzling use of gold?
Bestiaries combine ancient natural philosophy with Christian allegory and moral instruction. Hugely popular in the Middle Ages, they survive today in relatively large numbers and in a wide range of languages. In MS 61, many animals are accompanied by their English names added in a late fifteenth-century hand. The mole, for instance, is glossed in Middle English as
moldwharp – literally an ‘earth-thrower’.
Fantastical creatures such as mermaids, phoenixes, and unicorns appear seamlessly alongside real animals in bestiaries. MS 61 illustrates this vividly: the griffin of Greek mythology is discussed directly before the elephant. The latter is depicted as a military beast carrying soldiers into battle, a very common representation that lies behind the ‘elephant and castle’ motif.
The York Bestiary is believed to have been produced at the Benedictine Priory of Holy Trinity, listed in the Domesday Book as one of the five great churches of the North. The priory’s library was almost certainly dispersed or destroyed during the dissolution of the monasteries, and this bestiary is its only known survivor. How the manuscript later came into the hands of William Paddy, Royal Physician and Fellow of St John’s, remains unknown. He bequeathed it to the College in 1634.
A full digitization of this volume is available at the Digital Bodleian. Find out more about the manuscript in this blog post.