Slow Looking Objects Bisclavret

Primary Object: The Werewolf or the Cannibal by Lucas Cranach the Elder 

This Primary Object is from Germany during the 15th-16th century and is now on display at The MET Museum. During this time period, there were a lot of religious issues with the Roman Catholic church struggling to keep their hold on Europe and the people turning towards their own ideologies and theories (The MET, 2002). This includes the myth about the werewolves which were not present in the Catholic scriptures. Also, the use of printmaking began to become more common, much like this version of print. The Werewolf or the Cannibal was made from a woodcut print (THE MET MUSEUM). The point of this print was to show that werewolves were not only monsters that you had to be afraid of, but they could be labelled as cannibals as well because they were humans and would attack and eat other humans. In this piece of artwork specifically, a werewolf is attacking, killing, and eating humans, with people, including children hiding in a barn in the background. At the time, this would have instilled fear in people because it would have shown that werewolves attack anybody, men, women, and children and that nobody is safe. Meaning that they are monsters without a heart. Yet, in Bisclavret, even though he lunged and attacked a knight, the people still believe he is of human nature and that he is not a savage monster like in the woodcut print. This proves that although werewolves could be seen as monsters, they are still human and show those characteristics such as anger and passion, which is shown when Bisclavret attacks the man who stole his clothes and his wife. 

Secondary Object: Livre de la Chasse by Gaston III Phoebus. 

This illustration that was possibly done by the Josephus Master and the Bedford Master appears in the Livre de la Chasse by Gaston III Phoebus from c.1406, which is a book from France. It was written in both French and Latin (The Morgan Library and Museum). In the illustration, there is somebody from the royalty which is the person portrayed with gold on their green garments, along with the huntsmen or knights chasing after a wolf through the woods. This is similar to how Bisclavret was first found by the king when the king declared him to have a man's mind because he was begging for mercy (De France, 152-160). This is the situation that leads them to what occurs in the passage where they still believe that Bisclavret has a human mind and a human heart. This photo also depicts the beginning of the story and shows what he went through while he was being chased through the woods. All of this leads to him being seen as a werewolf with human characteristics and comes to the conclusion that he is human, possibly like the werewolf being hunted in the picture. 

Secondary Object: Cloth from Northern France

This object is cloth from Northern France from the Frankish people during the 6th-7th century woven from wool, not on display in the MET Museum (MET Museum). It is very simple and comes in both black and brown, which most likely means that common people wore it and it was worn daily. It would also be likely that Bisclavret wore something made from this material when he went into the woods to become a werewolf. The reason that this cloth and his clothing are so important was that, to him, it was the only thing that was keeping him human, as he had to put back on his clothing to return to his human form. Yet, in the passage previously, we are shown that even though he is in the form of a monster and he portrays what some could see as him being beastly or non-human, those around him, the king and his men, still view him as a person. It also shows that the cloth and his clothes are not the only things that make him human, but so do his heart and his mind.