#NotALion

Lions drawn by people who had never seen one, and their cousins: #NotAnElephant, #NotADolphin, #NotABear and the rest of the menagerie.

Seventeenth century

The battle for King #NotALion.

From: Henry Peacham, Minerua Britanna or A garden of heroical deuises furnished, and adorned with…
Printed: 1612
Image from: Early English Books Online (STC 19511)

Seventeenth century

When your #NotALion gets into your opium.

From: Henry Peacham, Minerua Britanna or A garden of heroical deuises furnished, and adorned with…
Printed: 1612
Image from: Early English Books Online (STC 19511)

Seventeenth century

Even God loves a #NotALion.

From: Henry Peacham, Minerua Britanna or A garden of heroical deuises furnished, and adorned with…
Printed: 1612
Image from: Early English Books Online (STC 19511)

My first original #NotALion woodcut purchase!

First #NotALion of the day.

Found a #NotALion at El Moro in Old San Juan.

Reading Margaret Atwood's The Year of the Flood and discovered that Toby had a vision out of medieval and Renaissance art.

This might be my favorite carved #NotALion ever.

My first #NotALion of the day. A nice St. Jerome.

My first #NotALion of Spain! In the courtyard of El Museo Reina Sophia, Madrid.

The Gate of #NotALion[s]. Catedral de Santa María de Toledo.

Spain is a #NotALion bonanza.

Is it weird that my parents offered to take me to Sweden and my only request is to go to Gripsholm Castle to see this bitchin' #NotALion?

When the party is in your honor, but you're such an extreme introvert that you just want to go home and read. #NotALion The most delectable history of Reynard the Fox. Printed by Edward Allde. London. 1620.

Image from: Early English Books Online (STC 20923)

Has anyone else noticed that almost all early modern personified #NotALion have erections? This one is even difficult to spot.

Proud of himself from the title page.

Sixteenth century

One of my favorite woodcut #NotALion. Oddly enough, in a treatise on physiognomy. The contemplation of mankinde. Printed by William Seres in London, 1571.

From: Thomas Hill, The contemplation of mankinde contayning a singuler discourse after the art of…
Printed: 1571
Image from: Early English Books Online (STC 13482)

Virgil and his rare #NotADog Sebastian Brant's edition of Virgil. 1502, Strasburg. #1502Virgil can be found:

WTFF?

Bonus woodcut on the verso with a fine #NotADolphin pillow.

Bonus woodcut on the verso with a fine #NotADolphin pillow.

And, of course, the @rijksmuseum had its fair share of #NotALion.

Our Airbnb in Brussels has the best wallpaper. It has #NotALion, #NotARhinoceros, and #NotAnElephant. It's like it was meant to be.

A big-headed St. Jerome and his trusty #NotALion. Albrecht Bouts, 1473-1549, The Patience of Saint Jerome. @FineArtsBelgium