Snail vs. Knight, from The Smithsfield Decretals, decretals of Gregory IX, Tolouse, c. 1300. Illuminations were added about forty years later in London.
Why did knives fight snails in illuminated manuscripts?
The truth is, nobody really knows for sure why snails are always fighting against knights in illuminated manuscripts. They are typically seen to be on the winning side of the fight and this has caused much speculation over why the knights always seem to be fighting snails:- 'the poor against oppressive aristocracy'; to ruin the reputation of the snail being a garden pet; even the ideal that it could be a symbolisation of the 'saucy female form.'
Rabbits killing men in The Smithfield Decretals, c. 1300
Long Neck, from Book Of Hours, England, early 14th century
Long Neck, from Book Of Hours, England, early 14th century
Dalmatian Sea Monster, an illustration by Poggio Bracciolini, added to a copy of Le Miroir du Monde, mid-15th century
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