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AN EXTREMELY RARE 15TH CENTURY ENGLISH OAK CARVING OF FOUR BESTIARY SYMBOLS. CIRCA 1450.

AN EXTREMELY RARE 15TH CENTURY ENGLISH OAK CARVING OF FOUR BESTIARY SYMBOLS. CIRCA 1450.

BESTIARIES ARE PARTICULARLY CHARACTERISTIC SYMBOLS OF MEDIEVAL CHRISTIANITY AND GIVE A UNIQUE INSIGHT INTO THE MEDIEVAL MIND, EACH ANIMAL, BIRD OR BEAST HAD ITS OWN MEANING OR MESSAGE,WHETHER IN ILLUMINATED MANUSCRIPTS OR CARVINGS IN WOOD OR STONE, OFTEN EACH REPRESENTING THE BATTLE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL OR MAN AND HIS OWN CONSCIENCE. THESE SUBJECTS FORMED A SIGNIFICANT PROPORTION OF SPIRITUAL THEMES IN CHURCH CARVING.

THIS RARE DEEPLY CARVED PANEL FROM THE MID 15TH CENTURY GIVES AN INSIGHT INTO A FRACTION OF THE MEDIEVAL MIND, THE STYLE AND SIMPLICITY OF THE CARVING MOST PROBABLY INDICATES THE ORIGIN TO BE OF THE SOUTH WEST COUNTIES OF ENGLAND, POSSIBLY SOMERSET/DEVON AND PROBABLY PART OF A FIXED SCREEN IN A CHURCH.

EACH CARVED PANEL FROM LEFT TO RIGHT AS FOLLOWS.
PANEL 1 DEPICTS A CREATURE OF HALF ASS AND HALF MAN, THIS CARVING PROBABLY DEPICTS A STUBBORN FOOL AS THE ASS BEING A STUBBORN FOOLISH ANIMAL COMBINED WITH A MANS HEAD AT THE REAR, IT IS PROBABLY WARNING AGAINST THE PATH OF FOOLISHNESS.

PANEL 2 IS A CARVED EAGLE, THE EABLE HAS SEVERAL CONNOTATIONS ONE BEING THE RENEWAL OF YOUTH.

PANEL 3 WE THINK IS A HAWK, THE HAWK REPRESENTS THE DEVIL WHO SEIZES THOSE WHO SEEK EARTHLY THINGS OUT OF GREED, SO POSSIBLY REPRESENTS SELF GREED.

PANEL 4 IS THE DRAGON OR WYVERN WHICH BOTH HAVE THE SAME MEANING, THEY ARE TOTALLY EVIL,FIERCE,RAPACIOUS AND DEADLY AND GIVE A WONDERFUL IDEA OF THE FATE AWAITING THE WRONGDOER. PROBABLY SIGNIFYING THE FATE OF STRAYING FROM THE PATH OF RIGHTOUSNESS.

THIS VERY RARE MID 15TH CENTURY ENGLISH CARVED PANEL IS POSSIBLY UNIQUE.

25.5" WIDE X 30" HIGH X 1" DEEP.

STOCK NO 1490.