Slow Looking at the Objects
1. Illustration from the Rochester Bestiary
The first part of this illustration from the Rochester Bestiary shows a pack of wolves strolling along side by side, while the second section shows a man stripped of his clothing striking two pebbles together as a cure to turn the wolves back into humans. This artwork was created in the 11th century (about 1230) on parchment codex paper and bound with other illustrated manuscripts in the post-1600s using a brown leather binding from the royal library. Despite having been created thousands of years ago, the image still has vibrant colour pigments and no obvious damage other than a few minor scratches.
This piece of art affirms the reoccurring association between clothing and werewolves in mediaeval times by giving indications that the act of taking off one's garments signifies the abandonment of one's humanity. The fact that clothing has been affiliated with civilization and humanitarian deeds since mediaeval times and that abandoning one's garment is now referred to as a descent from humanity to monstrous is supported by this artwork, which was created far back in the 11th century. The illustrations help people comprehend werewolves as beings that live on the precipice between monsters and humans.
2. Bodleian Library MS. Douce 266 fol. 006b recto from Book of Hours
The artwork from the lower half page of Bodleian Library MS. Douce 266 fol. 006b from Book of Hours showcases the image of a wolf giving a speech to a flock of sheep. Although wolves and sheep are considered to be enemies, with wolves preying on sheep, in most ancient and modern literature, the fact that a wolf is preaching to sheep showcases that wolves still have a sense of compassion and are not always violent despite their appearance looking ferocious. It should be noted that in the illustration, the wolf is shown wearing clothing, denoting that it has some degree of humanity and is capable of feeling humane emotions and not consumed by the thirst for blood and destruction. Made between 1480 and 1500, this manuscript made of parchment material and written in Latin and Dutch related to the illustration from the Rochester Bestiary in a way that the form of clothing on the monster reveals a lot about their mental state.
3. Royal MS 13 B VIII, f.18r from Topographia Hibernica
The Royal MS 13 B VIII, f. 18r is a page from Topographia Hibernica containing a picture displaying two wolves and a man who appears to be a priest. One wolf appears to be lying down in a helpless state with the priest cautiously putting an object into the wolf’s mouth while the other stays silently behind the priest. According to a research journal by Julia Merit Van Rosmalen at KU Leuven, the context of the illustration is that the female wolf – the one inside the cylinder – is receiving a host from the priest to cross the bridge between the cylinder den and the rest of the world. The fact that the wolves were able to communicate with the priest without any speck of aggressiveness shows that even though they do not have the physical appearance of a human, they are still able to communicate with a human. This parchment codex manuscript made some time between the 10th and 11th century provides an insight to the coexistence of humanity and monstrosity within mythical creatures such as werewolves.