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.

008. MS M.890, fols. 1v–2r

Fountains Abbey bestiary

ca. 1325–1350
England, probably North Yorkshire
227 x 152 mm
MS M.890, fols. 1v–2r

Gift of Alastair Bradley Martin, 1958

Left Page (Fol. 1v)
Tiger: A hunter uses a mirror to distract a tiger while he steals away her two cubs.

Pard: A pard—a fierce mythical feline with a mottled coat—is depicted here with a humanoid face and beard.

Panther: The charismatic panther attracts animals with its fragrant breath.

Right Page (Fol. 2r)
Unicorn: A unicorn is lured by a maiden to her lap so that a male hunter can drive his spear through its flank.

Lynx: A lynx makes a puddle of urine, which was believed to harden into a precious stone.

Griffin: A griffin—part lion, part eagle—strikes a heraldic pose.

Elephant: A war elephant, which the text tells us is as big as a mountain, bears on its back a European-style crenelated castle guarded by two soldiers.