View synonyms for bestiary

bestiary

[ bes-chee-er-ee, bees- ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

, plural bes·ti·ar·ies.

a collection of moralized fables, especially as written in the Middle Ages, about actual or mythical animals.

bestiary

/ ˈbɛstɪərɪ /

a moralizing medieval collection of descriptions (and often illustrations) of real and mythical animals

1615–25; < Medieval Latin bēstiārium, neuter of Latin bēstiārius. See beast, -ary

For the structure of this verse, see p. 327; the following is a restoration and scansion of the passages in the Bestiary.

The author of the Bestiary was acquainted with one or both of these.

The medival bestiary was a book which sought to enunciate religious instruction by an appeal to the curiosity of credulous people.

Another Bestiary, of slightly later date, illuminated in the same manner.

A Bestiary of the beginning of the thirteenth century, enriched with many very curious paintings upon a ground of brilliant gold.

April 24, 2024gallimaufry

[gal-uh-maw-free ]

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