What is it about?
Although bestiality is a taboo subject in both the Bible and the Qur'an, images of close human/animal contact are more common than we would imagine in medieval art, if you know where to look. This paper examines human/animal hybrids, transformations, and illustrations of tales that either involve, or just closely avoid, human/animal sexual encounters in both European and Islamic art.
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Why is it important?
This type of subject is rarely broached. It is timely now because there is a lot of interest in human/animal relationships, and it shows that there are similar fears, taboos, and desires manifested in both medieval European and Islamic art.
Perspectives
Even though I have studied medieval art for years, I had no idea that I would find such interesting visual material on this subject. It shows that it is a fascinating area that is still underexplored, and it goes against preconceived notions that sexual imagery was avoided during this epoch.
Anna Russakoff
American University of Paris
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Bestiality in Medieval Art: Cross-cultural Reflections on a Lascivious Lacuna, August 2025, De Gruyter,
DOI: 10.1163/9789004707481_010.
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