The Monster of Ravenna and Other Imaginations: Animal Symbols, Birth Defects, and Political Agendas in the Conceptualization of Monstrosities from Medieval Witchcraft Lore to Early Modern Europe, with Some Repercussions in the 19th Century and Beyond

Fascination with the unknown has always characterized humanity. This includes creation of mythical creatures that are believed to exist even though fully unproven. Fabricating monsters began to peak in early modern Europe. Sixteenth-century monsters were among the earliest documented, often with printed leaflets that displayed such creatures. This monster tradition began to flourish, both in scientific and popular form including human, animal and hybrid monsters. One of the most famous products of the time was the Monster of Ravenna, inspired by a malformed human birth in 1512, Italy. Due to a lack of understanding of teratology, animal and, indeed, even human birth defects were mischaracterized and used as tools to support the validity of monsters for political agendas. Animals have been an ongoing part of these and other mythical conceptualizations, sometimes of the divine, sometimes of the demonic. This article considers appearance of human- and animal-based fictional monsters in early modern Europe with some later repercussions.