Mantyger

Mantyger

Region of origin: Medieval Europe

A chimeric beast with the body of a tyger, a creature from heraldry similar to but distinct from a tiger, and the hands and face of a man with curling horns and tusks. It is believed the name may be a corruption of the Persian manticore based on a false etymology and use has become somewhat intertwined, but despite some similar features they are often considered separate beasts, and the mantyger may take its origins from second-hand descriptions of baboons.

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Muscaliet

Muscaliet

Region of origin: France

Appearing in the translated bestiary of Pierre de Beauvais, the muscaliet is a rodent said to generate an immense amount of body heat. It will build its nest burrowed underneath a tree it gathers fruit from and the heat it gives off as it lives there is enough to dry out and eventually kill the tree.

Originally posted on Tumblr on August 4, 2016

Jaculus

Jaculus

Region of origin: Medieval Europe

A creature from medieval bestiaries, the jaculus or javelin snake was a small, flying serpent which did not possess venom so would instead perch in trees and wait for its intended victim to pass underneath, at which point it would launch itself rigidly and strike the prey, knocking it out or fatally wounding it through impact.

Originally posted on Tumblr on July 30, 2016

Chichevache

Chichevache

Region of origin: England

In Middle English bestiaries, this was a creature said to feast only on obedient and faithful wives, so it was perpetually starving due to their scarcity. Its husband-eating counterpart, the Bicorne, however was always depicted as plump and over-stuffed.

Originally posted on Tumblr on November 27, 2015

Myrmecoleon

Myrmecoleon

Region of origin: Western Europe

A creature from medieval bestiaries that possibly got its start from a mistranslation or play on words. It’s said the lion half can only eat meat and the ant half can only digest grains, so the beast’s conflicting natures doom it to starve.

Originally posted on Tumblr on November 4, 2015

Marginalia

Marginalia

Region of origin: Medieval Europe

If the drawings in the margins of medieval texts are to be believed, knights and monks spent a lot of time fighting snails of various sizes or being laid siege by rabbits with access to a variety of weapons, among other animals and daemons. Theories range from these being mere doodles born of boredom to representing the internal battle with sins such as sloth and lust but no one really knows the truth behind the strange ubiquity of this recurring iconography.

Originally posted on Tumblr on October 18, 2015