Elephants in English Literature, Art, and Material Culture before the Reign of Henry III

Abstract

For animals that are not definitely known to have lived on the island of Britain until the reign of Henry III, elephants feature in a notable number of English texts and art before the thirteenth century. Moreover, carvers continued to use elephant ivory throughout the early Middle Ages. However, English speakers’ knowledge of elephants’ anatomy was still limited before the late twelfth century. Building on previous literary, art historical, and historical scholarship, this article uses elephants to examine the limits of early English speakers’ understandings of the wider world.