Category Archives: medieval

“The Cock is a Bird that Can Tell Time”

  You cannot blame the author for the sheer volume of noteworthy cocks in the world. She is perfectly aware that she has already written about the Cock of Dawn, but that was from the Chinese tradition, and the author reserves … Continue reading

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Filed under folklore, gender bending, human behavior, medieval, rated NC17

Echeneis: stubborn little bastard of a fish.

Isidore of Seville, who is, let’s face it, quite the hero for BV, named it the “delay,” for obvious reasons In the 1st century CE, Lucan wrote of it as  ”…the sucking fish / Which holds the vessel back though eastern … Continue reading

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Filed under academia, extinct species, folklore, marine life, medieval, Phobia-inducing, Uncategorized

Money Might Not, But Barnacle Geese Do (grow on trees)

    British Library, Harley MS 4751, Folio 36r What medieval-inspired bestiary would be complete without the Barnacle Goose?  According to Sir John Mandeville, who wrote in the 14th century CE, this fantastic creature is–or was– a species of goose that grows on trees. Not in trees, … Continue reading

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Filed under academia, baby animals, extinct species, folklore, human behavior, medieval, parasites, Phobia-inducing, the strange and the beautiful, Uncategorized

Catobelpas: Head of an Ox, Tail of a snake, Bad dinner date.

To all of the singletons reading this entry: the author of BV would like to caution you about the Catobelpas, for according to Pliny the Elder, this next member of our medieval bestiary series, which is  “of moderate size and inactive … Continue reading

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Filed under academia, extinct species, human behavior, medieval, the strange and the beautiful, Uncategorized

“Viking Kittens iz Where its at” Indeed.

  It is difficult to resist the lure of a theme. and the lure of the “crazy/cute/creepy cat video” theme is best compared, dear reader(s), to crack cocaine. While naysayers (and I have one particular naysayer in mind, who will … Continue reading

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Filed under baby animals, common household pets, exceedingly cute, extinct species, human behavior, medieval, Phobia-inducing, the strange and the beautiful

The Ant-lion (lion ant)

The entire premise of Bestiarum Vocabulum, as some of you might know, rests on the genre of the medieval bestiary ( or bestiarum vocabulum). It is therefore meet that we occasionaly visit the archives for entries, as part of an … Continue reading

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Filed under academia, extinct species, medieval, parasites, Phobia-inducing, the strange and the beautiful, Uncategorized