Medieval Monsters

by Damien Kempf, Maria L. Gilbert

The medieval world was teeming with monsters--on the edges of manuscript pages, on the fringes of maps, not to mention crowding in from all sides of the known world. Believed to dwell in exotic, remote areas, these inexplicable parts of God's creation aroused fear, curiosity, and wonder in equal measure. Powerfully captured in the illustrations that filled bestiaries, travel books, and even Bibles and devotional works, these misshapen brutes continue to delight audiences today with their vitality and humor.
           
Filled with satyrs, sea creatures, griffins, dragons, and devils, Medieval Monsters is a cornucopia of illustrations from medieval manuscripts that are at once fascinating, grotesque, and amusing. This successor to the British Library's Medieval Cats and Medieval Dogs provides an accessible and informative guide to bewitching demons, blemmyae, Cyclops, and multi-headed beasts of all sorts. Over one hundred wondrous and terrifying images show how strange creatures sparked artists' imaginations to incredible heights, while offering fascinating insights into the medieval mind.

Genres: History, Art, Nonfiction, Art History, Medieval, Folklore, Crafts

96 pages, Hardcover

First published May 15, 2015

Reviews

[E.M. Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only fault with this gorgeous little book is that I wished it was longer! Great overview of a fascinating subject and the illustrations are just wonderful. A real gem.

[Mehmet Dönmez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pure joy... Precious for everyone interested in manuscripts. Maybe I make reproduction of one of them in the future :)

[Gastjäle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice picture book with mildly informative descriptions, yet it doesn't really offer you anything besides. I also couldn't help feeling that the book was partly composed tongue-in-cheek...

A good exercise while reading the book would be to switch one's viewpoint from the modern meme-infested hurrdurrity to one which actually attempts to feel what might've been originally endeavoured to impart with the paintings. The latter is purely hypothetical, since we can never know for sure, but it's useful for two reasons: 1) to give more perspective for one's appreciation of old art and 2) to figure out what it is with these old paintings that make us laugh.

It would seem that it's indeed cartoons and memes which insinuate their carefree, abstracting irreverence on (at least) my mind. And once one can point such things out, one can attempt to lay them aside for a while in order to see real gravitas in these beautiful albeit malformed pictorial people.

[Heather (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Medieval Monster facts! 👹

- The Panotii (all ears) had ears so large they served as blankets during the cold. They were very shy creatures and used their ears to fly away from strangers.

- Cynocephali symbolised the savagery of the non-Christian people.

- Sciopods (shadow foot) had one giant foot so shade them from the sun when they lay on their backs.

- Unicorns were used as a symbol of Christ comimg into the womb of Mary and would always succumb to virgins.

- Whales were often associated with the devil and danger.

- There was a legend that Alexander the Greats dad was a dragon.

- Saint Margaret conquered a dragon.

- There is a manuscript image of Mary punching the devil.

- Manuscript images of death showed the soul as a baby leaving the body ready to choose god or the devil who were waiting beside the death bed.

- The Visions of the Knight Tondal was an Irish text about a knight who falls into a coma and wakes up in hell and witnesses the different devils and punishments for sinners.

[Κεσκίνης Χρήστος · Rating 5 out of 5]

Πάρα πολύ καλό βιβλιαράκι με τέρατα του Μεσαίωνα και ΠΑΝΕΜΟΡΦΕΣ εικόνες και πολύ ωραίο layout. Δεν είχε να προσφέρει κάτι σε όποιον έχει διαβάσει και άλλα παρόμοια βιβλία, μα είναι πανέμορφη αρχή για όποιον ψάχνει κάτι αντίστοιχο. Και φυσικά είναι όμορφο βιβλίο για όλες τις βιβλιοθήκες.

[seray🍓 · Rating 4 out of 5]

it’s a DELIGHT of a read

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love monsters. I love illuminated manuscripts. I love high quality art prints. So yeah, I'm very happy to have this book. It's a fun little book. But wowwee the text of it feels like you're being talked down to. If the target audience is children who have a morbid fascination with monsters, it's right on track.

[Koeneman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun book of about 90 pages with even less text but much interesting images of Medieval manuscripts depicting weird mythical creatures and beasts.

Overal a fun read about all the mythical creatures but I would like to have a little bit more information about each of them.

1 hour is enough to finish this book.

[JaNel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book on medieval monsters and this guy totally made up a bunch of monsters from hi “travels” and it became a best-seller. I can totally imagine this guy today on social media, rocking up the followers with his true “facts”. But then you have the Friar on p. 22, debunking the fake news with his own experience. Just goes to show, people are people. And how modern methods of communication exploit humanity’s foibles.

[Harper · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute little book, really great reproductions of the medieval illustrations. A little disjointed and not really in depth information, but more like little vignettes about each piece. Read “Medieval Monsters: Terrors, Aliens, Wonders” by Lindquist & Mittman for a real cohesive look at medieval monstrousness.

[Lukerik · Rating 2 out of 5]

A pretty little hardback with nice shiny paper. Excellent quality reproductions of illuminations in EXTREME CLOSE-UP. Fine. Unfortunately they’re accompanied by the most inane commentary I’ve ever come across. No better than click-bait. Good as a stocking-filler for those who don’t like satsumas.

[Alaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the artwork and the written text, although I wish there was more written. I would have liked someone to explain exactly what I was looking at in each painting, and it also would have been nice for the Latin (I assume it was Latin) to be translated. Very quick read. Lots of cool pictures. Especially enjoyed the ones that looked like Yoda and Sam the Eagle.

[Beau · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book. Very interesting! One complaint I have though is that with all the art depicted within there is not one note connected to the art explaining the country of origin (assuming England) the year of its creation or perhaps the artist. Sure most artists would be unknown but the dates and origin? Any explanation? Nothing. Otherwise it would be a solid 4 or weak 5

[Ben Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tragically short. Read it one, very short sitting. I would have liked a little more information on what some of the creaturee actually were, but the main attraction is probably the pictures.

Good fun. Wish there was more!

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic pictures and another fun read. Light and yet informative.

[G. Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great little book, gorgeous illustrations from manuscripts. Lively commentary and good information. Read it!

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, interesting, beautiful artwork.

[Lumissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Viehättävästi kuvitettu ja viihdyttävä pieni kirjanen keskiajan hirviöistä. Olisi saanut olla vähän pidempikin.

[Winterkidj]

So, so interesting. Would've liked a bit more explanatory text though.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short intro book on medieval monsters, mostly according to European Christians. Each page is its own small paragraph or two of some "monster". I enjoyed the illustrations the best.

[Noah Wouw · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Marcus Bines · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and funny and fascinating. And a very quick read!

[Gizmo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un gran trabajo crítico de selección de miniaturas provenientes de diversos manuscritos medievales. Demian Kempf y Maria Gilbert no se quedan en la academia ni en la divulgación a veces medio tonta sino que lo hacen con humor constante, lo que no significa que pierda la rigurosidad adecuada necesaria para estos trabajos.
La selección es bastante amplia y va desde la marginalia hasta las miniaturas más ricas del Libro de Kells. Un libro con una edición preciosa que sólo tiene una falla: ser muy corto y dejarte con ganas de más hermosas monstruosidades.

[Elizabeth Judd Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This delightful little book was an impulse buy at a museum gift shop. It's full of amazing and entertaining medieval illustrations of monsters, devils, and mythological creatures, as well as stories and information about them. A little gem!

[Miz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and sweet, with fascinating illustrations. Perfect for whilling a way an hour.

[iosephvs bibliothecarivs · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very brief but informative survey of legendary beasts of the medieval world with colourful period illustrations throughout.

[Mills College Library]

745.67 K327 2015

[Fabio · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful little compendium of apocalyptic medieval visions and folklore, plus a nice springboard to original medieval sources.

[Emma Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mostly about the picture examples but this is a charming overview of a fascinating subject. Looking forward to delving deeper.

[Ian McHugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully illustrated book produced in association with the British Library (whose manuscripts were used for the images). The vivid nature of the accompanying pictures and the informative text show how a Medieval imagination perceived 'monsters' in all of their forms. I found the beasts associated with 'foreigners' from unknown lands to be most interesting. The are also numerous monsters shown that brought to life biblical tales of trials and tribulation and temptation by the devil. Some super pictures and all in beautiful colour.