A
bestiary, or
Bestiarum vocabulum is a
compendium of beasts. Originating in the
Ancient world, bestiaries were made popular in the
Middle Ages in illustrated volumes that described various animals, birds and even rocks. The
natural history and illustration of each beast was usually accompanied by a moral lesson. This reflected the belief that the world itself was the Word of God, and that every living thing had its own special meaning. For example, the
pelican, which was believed to tear open its breast to bring its young to life with its own blood, was a living representation of
Jesus. The bestiary, then, is also a reference to the
symbolic language of
animals in Western Christian art and literature.
