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RAPTORS: ON THE ICONOGRAPHY OF AN ENIGMATIC CAPITAL IN THE NAVE OF BEVERLEY MINSTER

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 November 2021

Elizabeth den Hartog Open the ORCID record for Elizabeth den Hartog [Opens in a new window]
Elizabeth den Hartog*
Affiliation:
Leiden University, Faculty of Humanities, Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society, Arsenaal, Arsenaalstraat 1, 2311 CT Leiden, Netherlands. Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

This article deals with the iconography of a unique fourteenth-century capital, situated near the one-time tomb of St John of Beverley in the nave of Beverley Minster, Yorkshire. The capital features two hybrid creatures, part animal, part human. Both creatures hold a severed bird’s claw. This article argues that these severed bird’s claws, resembling drinking vessels, are likely to be griffin claws. This interpretation allows for a reappraisal of the meaning of these figures and their use in the church.

Keywords

Beverley Minsterhybridspardonersshrine of St John of Beverlygriffin claws
Type
Research paper
Information
The Antiquaries Journal , Volume 102 , September 2022 , pp. 188 - 205
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Society of Antiquaries of London

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