If you are a regular reader of my blog, you will know that I have often published in the past images of medieval animals and creatures – cats, dogs and snails – all from the British Library’s illuminated manuscripts. Today, it’s the turn of the Macclesfield Psalter to yield up its secret feline friends who appear in its folios.

The first two images below are most certainly magnificent micing medieval cats.  But the last two? Are they cats… Or are they bears?

The Macclesfield Psalter – folio 79v

The Macclesfield Psalter – folio 106r

The Macclesfield Psalter – folio 14v

The Macclesfield Psalter – folio 182v.
He seems to be a cat with a beautiful winged hybrid creature in his mouth.

If you want to read more about The Macclesfield Psalter from my blog, please do subscribe either by using the ‘Subscribe via Email’ button top right of my blog, or the button at the very bottom.  If you’ve enjoyed reading this post, then please do ‘Like’ it with the Facebook button below.

All digital images from the Macclesfield Psalter appear by courtesy of The Fitzwilliam Museum and may not be reproduced (© The Fitzwilliam Museum).

Further reading
Stella Panayotova The Macclesfield Psalter: A Complete Facsimile (2008)
Stella Panayotova The Macclesfield Psalter Book (Cambridge, 2005)
Stella Panayotova The Macclesfield Psalter (PDF format on CD)(Cambridge, 2005)

You may also be interested in the following
– Early-modern images
– Images of Medieval animals
– Images of Medieval music
– Images of Tudors
– Images of Medieval devils
– Images of Medieval funerals
– Images of Medieval cats

© Essex Voices Past 2013.

A year ago today, I published my first post, Great Dunmow’s Medieval Manors, on this blog.  Originally, I created my blog to publish some of my dissertation research ‘Religion and Society in Great Dunmow, Essex, c.1520 to c.1560′ from my Cambridge University’s Masters of Studies in Local and Regional history awarded to me in January 2012 (sadly, the degree no longer appears to be running).

However, over the year, this blog has evolved into a patchwork of posts all loosely based around the local history of the North Essex town of Great Dunmow, English medieval history, early-modern England and Tudor history. To celebrate my blog-anniversary, today and tomorrow I will be publishing my most viewed 12 posts from the last year.  Thank you for reading my posts, writing lovely inspiring comments, and ‘talking’ to me on twitter.  I look forward to writing another year of posts and sharing with you my view of England’s rich heritage and history.

Below are my most viewed top 6 posts from the last year.

1. Interpreting primary sources – the 6 ‘w’s – For all historians-in-training – analysing primary sources.

2. Images of medieval cats – Cats, as illustrated on the folios of medieval illuminated manuscripts now in the care of the British Library.

3. Queen Elizabeth’s visit to Great Dunmow – The story of Queen Elizabeth’s I’s Royal Progress through Essex and Suffolk during the Summer of 1561.

4. The clergy in pre-Reformation England – The vicars and ‘Sirs’ of the pre-Reformation Catholic clergy with particular reference to the 1520s clergy to Great Dunmow.

5. Blacksheep Sunday: Witches, witchcraft and bewitchment – The tragic story of a neighbourly conflict in Great Dunmow during the 1560s which exploded into the accusations of witchcraft and bewitchment.

6. Thomas Bowyer, weaver and martyr of Great Dunmow d.1556 – The story of how an established family from the town of Great Dunmow produced a son who in 1556 was burnt at the stake for his Protestant faith.

Join me next time to discover my next top 12 posts (6-12)

Which were your favourite posts and why?
Please do leave your thoughts on my blog below.
Thank you!

© Essex Voices Past 2012-2013.

One of my most viewed blog posts has been Images of Medieval Cats from the British Library’s collection of exquisite illuminated manuscripts. So here to brighten up your day  are some more Medieval Cats, doing what cats do best – being magnificent.

Detail of a miniature of a rat and a cat from Herbal (Lombardy c. 1440),
shelfmark Sloane 4016 f. 62,  © British Library Board.

Detail of a miniature of a mouse and a cat from Herbal (Lombardy c. 1440),
shelfmark Sloane 4016 f. 40,  © British Library Board.

Cats and rats from Bestiary (England, 2nd or 3rd quarter of the 13th century),
shelfmark Sloane 3544 f. 20v,  © British Library Board. 

Cat and dog from Collection of halakhical works (France, 1392)
shelfmark Additional 18684 f. 53v,  © British Library Board.

Cat and mouse from Codex Justiniani in 9 books,  (England, Central (possibly Oxford), c.1250) shelfmark Harley 3753 f. 28v,  © British Library Board.

Cat from Bestiary (England, S. E. (possibly Rochester), 2nd quarter of the 13th century)
shelfmark Royal 12 F XIII f. 43,  © British Library Board.

Detail of decorated initial ‘Q'(ui) with foliate motifs, clasps, a cock, a dog biting a cat and a cat carrying mice from Moralia in Job, (Germany, W. (Arnstein), 2nd half of the 12th century) shelfmark Harley 3053 f. 56v,  © British Library Board.

Miniature of a gray cat and a white cat, hunting mice from Bestiary, and various theological texts, (England, 1st quarter of the 13th century),
shelfmark Royal 12 C XIX f. 36v,  © British Library Board.

All digital images from the British Library’s Online Images archive appear by courtesy of the British Library Board and may not be reproduced © British Library Board.

Further reading
Katherine Meikle Walker, Medieval Cats, (London, 2011).
Katherine Meikle Walker, Medieval Pets, (London, 2012).

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This blog
If you want to read more from my blog, please do subscribe either by using the Subscribe via Email button top right of my blog, or the button at the very bottom.  If you’ve enjoyed reading this post, then please do Like it with the Facebook button and/or leave a comment below.

Thank you for reading this post.

You may also be interested in the following
– Early-modern images
– Images of Medieval animals
– Images of Medieval music
– Images of Tudors
– Images of Medieval devils
– Images of Medieval funerals
– Images of Medieval cats

© Essex Voices Past 2012-2013.

 ‘Cat playing a rebec’ from Book of Hours (S.E. England, c1320-c1330),
shelfmark Harley 6563 f. 40, © British Library Board.

 ‘Cat in a tower, throwing stones down at attacking mice’ from Book of Hours
(S.E. England, c1320-c1330), shelfmark Harley 6563 f. 72, © British Library Board.

 ‘Marginal grotesques, arms, and marginal paintings of a cat playing an instrument, and a rabbit beating a drum’ from Book of Hours (S.E. England, c1320-c1330),
shelfmark Harley 6563 ff. 43v-44, © British Library Board.

 ‘A cat with a mouse’ from Book of Hours (the ‘Harley Hours’) (England, Last quarter of the 13th century), shelfmark Harley 928 f. 44v, © British Library Board.

 ‘A cat and a mouse’ from Theological miscellany, including the Summa de vitiis, (England, 2nd or 3rd quarter of the 13th century, after c. 1236),
shelfmark Harley 3244 f. 49v, © British Library Board.

 ‘Cats and mouse’ from Bestiary, with extracts from Giraldus Cambrensis on Irish birds, (South England, 2nd quarter of 13th Century), shelfmark Harley 4751 f.30v, © British Library Board.

All digital images from the British Library’s Online Images archive appear by courtesy of the British Library Board and may not be reproduced (© British Library Board).

Further reading
Katherine Meikle Walker, Medieval Cats, (London, 2011).
Katherine Meikle Walker, Medieval Pets, (London, 2012).

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

This blog
If you want to read more from my blog, please do subscribe either by using the Subscribe via Email button top right of my blog, or the button at the very bottom.  If you’ve enjoyed reading this post, then please do Like it with the Facebook button and/or leave a comment below.

Thank you for reading this post.

You may also be interested in the following
– Early-modern images
– Medieval Manuscripts
– Images of Medieval animals
– Images of Medieval music
– Images of Tudors
– Images of Medieval devils
– Images of Medieval funerals

© Essex Voices Past 2012-2013.