r/MedievalCreatures • • 3d ago

Moderator Announcement 📢 PSA: These famous viral paintings of medieval cats? Yeah… they’re not actually medieval...

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323 Upvotes

I know, I know. A shocking revelation! /s

Although this may be obvious to art historians and art fans, (the style is a huge giveaway!), these two feline masterpieces are NOT medieval. This has been confirmed by the original photographer of the paintings.

Since the creation of this sub nearly 3 years ago, we’ve had to remove countless submissions of these very cats to avoid perpetuating the ongoing online myth that they are medieval.

Based on the OG photographers date estimation, these paintings would still fall outside our date rules - we only allow paintings up to the 1800s - although, IMHO as an Art Historian, they look more 19th-century, rather than 20thC. So, please enjoy these distinguished, Historically Misrepresented gentlemen, for this one-time only PSA post.

They may not be medieval, they may not even be historical, but they are still very good bad paintings.

📣 Shameless promotion alert! If you enjoy seeing cats in professional paintings, why not pop over to r/CatsInArt? And if your feline tastes lean more towards ye olde photographs, you might enjoy r/vintagecats, too! Because, really, you can never join too many cat subreddits.


r/MedievalCreatures • • 15h ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) Weasel attacking a basalisk -

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313 Upvotes

Ashmole Bestiary c 1300


r/MedievalCreatures • • 22h ago

RENAISSANCE/BAROQUE, ETC (1450 - 1600s) How this year has got me feeling like

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303 Upvotes

Book of Hours, Trinity College Library, Cambridge, Ms. B.1.46, fol. 137r, c. 1460


r/MedievalCreatures • • 1d ago

MODERN (1700s - 1800s) Cat with Krampus - postcard by artist E. Dölker, dated 1898

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1.2k Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 1d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) The fox fooling birds

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154 Upvotes

Aberdeen Bestiary - c 1240.


r/MedievalCreatures • • 3d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) when the cute aggression hits

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1.8k Upvotes

From the 15th-century


r/MedievalCreatures • • 4d ago

MODERN (1700s - 1800s) Cats Being Instructed in the Art of Mouse-Catching by an Owl, created around 1700 by an unknown artist of the Lombard School

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1.3k Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 4d ago

RENAISSANCE/BAROQUE, ETC (1450 - 1600s) Just a-swangin'

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925 Upvotes

Depiction of the letter M, The Songbook of Zeghere van Male, ca. 1542


r/MedievalCreatures • • 6d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) When you travel, it’s the people you’re with that matter, not where you’re going.

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282 Upvotes

Jacquemart Gielée, Renart le Nouvel, 1301-1320, Français 372, Folio 37r. BnF


r/MedievalCreatures • • 7d ago

RENAISSANCE/BAROQUE, ETC (1450 - 1600s) Pages from the sketchbook of Stephan Schriber (1494). A manuscript which appears to be some kind of sketchbook, belonging to the fifteenth-century monk, where ideas and layouts for illuminated manuscripts were tried out and skills developed

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673 Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 8d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) A load of balls -

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177 Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 8d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) King Afonso V of Portugal with his little buddy (15th century)

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427 Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 9d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) In medieval manuscripts, hedgehogs are depicted with fruit on their spines. It was said that they would climb up vines or shake them, then roll around on the fallen grapes spearing them with their quills. This way, they could carry all the fruit home to feed their young

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659 Upvotes

Illustration from the Rochester Bestiary, ca. 1230


r/MedievalCreatures • • 9d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) The party elephant is here! (from Matthew Paris's chronicle - 13th century)

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193 Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 10d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) Leucrota be kidding -

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155 Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 10d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) St. Margaret of Antioch walloping the demon Beelzebub with a hammer. From the paintings of the mystical marriage of St. Catherine, circa 1340

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1.4k Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 10d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) Saint Anthony getting beaten by demons - Aragon, 15th century

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356 Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 10d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) Yale never believe this -

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76 Upvotes

The Yale from The Medieval Bestry circa 1200 - 1210.


r/MedievalCreatures • • 11d ago

RENAISSANCE/BAROQUE, ETC (1450 - 1600s) Detail from The Witches’ Cove, a 16th-century Flemish painting attributed to a follower of Jan Mandijn.

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1.5k Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 12d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) Can you please help me find this owl ?

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486 Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 12d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) don't talk to me or my son ever again

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1.2k Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 12d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) “Imagine a big thing like you being scared…”

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295 Upvotes

War Elephant with Soldiers. France, c. 1360–1365 Illumination from the Bible historiale.
National Library of France, Department of Manuscripts, French 5707, fol. 172r.


r/MedievalCreatures • • 12d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) Because even Jesus had a horsey toy

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173 Upvotes

Initial O: The Virgin Mary Reading and Jesus Riding a Hobbyhorse
Circle of Jean Colombe (Paris, ca. 1480)

Tempera colors, gold, silver, and ink on parchment.

In a copy of The Hours of Anthony of Burgundy, Private collection, L.2021.70, fols. 224v-225.


r/MedievalCreatures • • 12d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) Good you wiped your feet before coming inside -

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133 Upvotes

r/MedievalCreatures • • 13d ago

MEDIEVAL (500AD - 1450AD) Adam naming the animals

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374 Upvotes