Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

010. MS M.890, fols. 3v–4r

Fountains Abbey bestiary

ca. 1325–1350
England, probably North Yorkshire
227 x 152 mm
MS M.890, fols. 3v–4r

Gift of Alastair Bradley Martin, 1958

Left Page (Fol. 3v)
Bonnacon: The legendary bonnacon, shown here as a curly-horned bull, was thought to defend itself from hunters with a blast of caustic feces.

Ape: At the top of the second column, a hunter pursues a female ape and her twin offspring. Under pressure, she will drop the infant she is cradling, while the less favored one—equated with sin—clings to her back.

Satyr: The bestiary classifies the satyr—shown here as a naked, bearded man with long, curled tail holding its club—as a type of ape.

Right Page (Fol. 4r)
Stag: The stag here may be leaping as described in the text, which also notes that its right horn is best for medicinal purposes.

Goats: A shepherd rests while one of his goats stands on hind legs to feed from a tree. Goats that graze in ever higher pastures were a metaphor for Christians who graze on the law of the Lord and rise from one virtue to another.