Alia, what a great historical and social tale; I really enjoyed reading it! White shirts pre-stained with blood is a psychological edge! And then there is the Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog...with big gnashing teeth. Seriously, though, there is evidence of Medieval illuminated manuscripts depicting vicious rabbits, with fascinating reasons behind the practice:
"Far from being sweet and adorable, rabbits in the margins and illuminated letters of these texts (which were entirely made and illustrated by hand before the invention of the printing press in the mid-15th century) are frequently shown wielding swords, axes, and bows and arrows as they fight against—and sometimes kill—those who often hunted them.
These kinds of medieval images in the margins, known as drolleries, were characterized by outlandish scenes that often reversed the dynamics of the real world. In the Middle Ages, people liked to portray scenarios in illustrations as the opposite of how they were in reality. This gave rise to the expression “the world turned upside down” when referring to culture of this era.
In these manuscripts, the rabbits, which were traditionally regarded as timid and gentle—and frequently hunted by humans and their hounds—instead become vicious killers themselves."
Oh, the Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog. Perhaps I have it all wrong, haha.
Thank you for the information about Medieval drolleries. The imagery is fantastic. I had seen images like these but had no idea of their significance in an upside down world.
Alia, what a great historical and social tale; I really enjoyed reading it! White shirts pre-stained with blood is a psychological edge! And then there is the Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog...with big gnashing teeth. Seriously, though, there is evidence of Medieval illuminated manuscripts depicting vicious rabbits, with fascinating reasons behind the practice:
"Far from being sweet and adorable, rabbits in the margins and illuminated letters of these texts (which were entirely made and illustrated by hand before the invention of the printing press in the mid-15th century) are frequently shown wielding swords, axes, and bows and arrows as they fight against—and sometimes kill—those who often hunted them.
These kinds of medieval images in the margins, known as drolleries, were characterized by outlandish scenes that often reversed the dynamics of the real world. In the Middle Ages, people liked to portray scenarios in illustrations as the opposite of how they were in reality. This gave rise to the expression “the world turned upside down” when referring to culture of this era.
In these manuscripts, the rabbits, which were traditionally regarded as timid and gentle—and frequently hunted by humans and their hounds—instead become vicious killers themselves."
See the link for illustrations, too!
https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/medieval-killer-rabbits
Oh, the Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog. Perhaps I have it all wrong, haha.
Thank you for the information about Medieval drolleries. The imagery is fantastic. I had seen images like these but had no idea of their significance in an upside down world.
Yes! I learned a bunch of new things because of your post!
Excellent, excellent article!
Thank you Steve, that's kind of you to say.