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.

012. MS M.890, fols. 5v–6r

Fountains Abbey bestiary

ca. 1325–1350
England, probably North Yorkshire
227 x 152 mm
MS M.890, fols. 5v–6r

Gift of Alastair Bradley Martin, 1958

Left Page (Fol. 5v)
Crocodile: A hulking, furry, man-eating beast meant to represent a crocodile hunches over its victim. Crocodiles were thought to shed tears over their prey and were thus considered a symbol of hypocrisy.

Right Page (Fol. 6r)
Manticore: A deadly manticore—which has the head of a man, the body of a lion, and the segmented tail of a scorpion—was often associated with Jews; in bestiaries its facial features might embody ugly anti-Jewish stereotypes.

Parandrus: The longhaired and prancing parandrus is said to live in Ethiopia.

Fox: A fox plays dead, its tongue hanging from its mouth, to lure crows into its devouring jaws.

Yale: The fierce yale was thought to be able to move its dangerous horns independently.