In this essay we explore the appearance of scenes from the Beast Epic alongside images from fox lore and other fox motifs in one particular kind of sculpture, namely, the carvings in wood on the underside of the hinged choir-stall seats called misericords. An examination of these carvings in this study is justified by the fact that parts of two of the earliest and best known Reynardian stories, masterpieces of medieval literary art, are to be seen on quite a few misericords alongside other scenes representing episodes in other kinds of fox lore. Furthermore, the scenes chosen by the wood-carvers or their patrons, and their particular forms, reveal interesting variations as they cross linguistic and cultural boundaries, in spite of the fact that they were all housed within the Church’s domain and meant primarily for the eyes of men in holy orders whose lives were dedicated to the Catholic Church. - [Authors]

Language: English

ISBN: 1-57181-737-9