(“Plungers? They didn’t have flush toilets in the Middle Ages!”
“That’s right. They were originally the only defense against demonically-possessed flying domestic pets. It was only much later they were found useful to unclog toilets.”)
@matz Thanks for the link to this German-language book on the importance of play in #medieval education - which identifies the cover image as
The #MorganLibrary, New York, Cod. M 456, fol. 68v
Currently reading my book proofs and alternating between “ooh I didn’t know that” and “wow that’s boring”. Since this is how I feel about most books I read, it seems I may have written a real book? @medievodons
@emmalbriant@dailymedievalcats@medievodons Alexander the great exploring the oceans in a barrel made from glass. He has a rooster, a dog and a cat. The rooster is to tell time, the cat is to help him breath, and the dog is how he surfaces once the dive is complete (by killing the dog).
The #14thCentury accounts of the #LadyOfClare record purchases there over the years: salt, often; also furs & lambskins; smoked herring, cod & stockfish; rice & almonds. #Almonds were bought in great quantity, used by the pastry chef from Paris & to indulge the pet #parrots.