02-02-2021, 10:55 PM
FALCON [wild]: Evil thought or action.
FALCON [tame or domestic]: Holy man or Gentile converted to Catholicism. Courtliness: a symbol of the page accompanying the Magi
FISH: Baptism. Believers. The symbol of Christ Himself, the most frequent symbolic use because nullthe five Greek letters forming the word 'fish' are the initial letters of the five words: 'Jesus Christ God's Soul Saviour'. In this sense, the fish symbol was frequently used in Early Christian art and literature. The fish is also used as a symbol of Baptism, for, just as the fish cannot live except in water, the Christian cannot live save through the waters of Baptism.
In Renaissance imagery, the fish is given as an attribute to Tobias because the gall of a fish restored the sight of his father Tobit; it is also given as an attribute to St. Peter, an allusion to his being a fisherman; and to St. Anthony of Padua, who preached to the
fish.
FLY: The fly has long been considered a bearer of evil or pestilence. In Catholic symbolism the fly is a symbol of sin. It sometimes appears in pictures of the Virgin and Child to convey the idea of sin and redemption. The fly as a bringer of disease was sometimes shown with the goldfinch, a 'saviour-bird' against the disease.
FOX: Cunning. Fraud. Lust. Cruelty. Traditionally the symbol of cunning and guile, the fox symbolized the Devil. Though it was shown frequently in sculpture during the Middle Ages, it was for the most part confined to book illustration during the Renaissance.
FROG: This has two opposite meanings:
1. Because of its reappearance after winter's hibernation, the Resurrection.
2. Because of its continual croaking and the fact that one of the plagues of Egypt was a rain of frogs [Chapter 8], it is sometimes the symbol of heretics or the repulsiveness of sin itself. More loosely, it is interpreted as a symbol of those who snatch at life's fleeting pleasures; hence it represents worldly things in general.
GIRAFFE: In the Renaissance the giraffe was depicted more because of its strange appearance and its rarity among animals in Europe than for any symbolic meaning.
GOAT: Fraud. Lust. Cruelty. The damned at the Last Judgement.
This interpretation is based upon a long passage in the Bible (Matthew 25:31-46) which relates how Christ upon His coming, shall separate the believing from the unbelieving, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. In the Renaissance the goat was usually shown in order to distinguish the sinners from the righteous.
GOLDFINCH: The goldfinch is fond of eating thistles and thorns, and since all thorny plants have been accepted as an allusion to Christ's crown of thorns, the goldfinch has become an accepted symbol of the Passion of Christ. In this sense, it frequently appears with the Christ Child, showing the close connection between the Incarnation and the Passion.
GOOSE: Since the time of the Romans, the goose has been a symbol of providence and vigilance. The legend of the Capitoline geese that saved Rome from the invasion of the Gauls is well known. In Catholic art the goose is sometimes given as an attribute to St. Martin of Tours, because a goose is supposed to have revealed his hiding place to the inhabitants of Tours, who had come to call the Saint to be their bishop.
GRASSHOPPER (Locust): The grasshopper, or locust, was one of the plagues visited upon the Egyptians because the Pharaoh's heart was hardened against the Word of the Lord. Accordingly, the grasshopper when held by the Christ Child is a symbol of the conversion of nations to Catholicism. This meaning is also derived from Proverbs 30:27: "The locust hath no king, yet they all go out by their bands," a passage early interpreted as referring to the nations formerly without Christ for their King. St. John the Baptist was said to have fed on locusts.
GRIFFIN: This mythic creature, usually depicted with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion, is used with two different and opposite meanings; on the one hand to represent the Saviour; on the other, because it is a combination of the preying of the eagle and the fierceness of the lion, to symbolize those who oppress and persecute Christians.
HARE/RABBIT: Lust. Hare/Rabbit at the feet: Victory over lust.
The hare, itself defenseless, is a symbol of men who put the hope of their salvation in the Christ and His Passion. A white hare is sometimes placed at the feet of the Virgin Mary to indicate her triumph over lust.
HOG: The hog is used to represent the demon of sensuality and gluttony. It is frequently shown as one of the attributes of St. Anthony Abbot, who is reputed to have vanquished this demon.
HORSE: In ancient times the horse was the emblem of the sun, as the ox was that of the moon. In the Renaissance, however, the horse was most often depicted as a symbol of lust. This interpretation is based on Jeremiah 5:8: "They are become as amorous horses and stallions, every one neighed after his neighbour's wife.."
HYENA: The unstable. Those who feed on false doctrine.
FALCON [tame or domestic]: Holy man or Gentile converted to Catholicism. Courtliness: a symbol of the page accompanying the Magi
FISH: Baptism. Believers. The symbol of Christ Himself, the most frequent symbolic use because nullthe five Greek letters forming the word 'fish' are the initial letters of the five words: 'Jesus Christ God's Soul Saviour'. In this sense, the fish symbol was frequently used in Early Christian art and literature. The fish is also used as a symbol of Baptism, for, just as the fish cannot live except in water, the Christian cannot live save through the waters of Baptism.
In Renaissance imagery, the fish is given as an attribute to Tobias because the gall of a fish restored the sight of his father Tobit; it is also given as an attribute to St. Peter, an allusion to his being a fisherman; and to St. Anthony of Padua, who preached to the
fish.
FLY: The fly has long been considered a bearer of evil or pestilence. In Catholic symbolism the fly is a symbol of sin. It sometimes appears in pictures of the Virgin and Child to convey the idea of sin and redemption. The fly as a bringer of disease was sometimes shown with the goldfinch, a 'saviour-bird' against the disease.
FOX: Cunning. Fraud. Lust. Cruelty. Traditionally the symbol of cunning and guile, the fox symbolized the Devil. Though it was shown frequently in sculpture during the Middle Ages, it was for the most part confined to book illustration during the Renaissance.
FROG: This has two opposite meanings:
1. Because of its reappearance after winter's hibernation, the Resurrection.
2. Because of its continual croaking and the fact that one of the plagues of Egypt was a rain of frogs [Chapter 8], it is sometimes the symbol of heretics or the repulsiveness of sin itself. More loosely, it is interpreted as a symbol of those who snatch at life's fleeting pleasures; hence it represents worldly things in general.
GIRAFFE: In the Renaissance the giraffe was depicted more because of its strange appearance and its rarity among animals in Europe than for any symbolic meaning.
GOAT: Fraud. Lust. Cruelty. The damned at the Last Judgement.
This interpretation is based upon a long passage in the Bible (Matthew 25:31-46) which relates how Christ upon His coming, shall separate the believing from the unbelieving, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. In the Renaissance the goat was usually shown in order to distinguish the sinners from the righteous.
GOLDFINCH: The goldfinch is fond of eating thistles and thorns, and since all thorny plants have been accepted as an allusion to Christ's crown of thorns, the goldfinch has become an accepted symbol of the Passion of Christ. In this sense, it frequently appears with the Christ Child, showing the close connection between the Incarnation and the Passion.
GOOSE: Since the time of the Romans, the goose has been a symbol of providence and vigilance. The legend of the Capitoline geese that saved Rome from the invasion of the Gauls is well known. In Catholic art the goose is sometimes given as an attribute to St. Martin of Tours, because a goose is supposed to have revealed his hiding place to the inhabitants of Tours, who had come to call the Saint to be their bishop.
GRASSHOPPER (Locust): The grasshopper, or locust, was one of the plagues visited upon the Egyptians because the Pharaoh's heart was hardened against the Word of the Lord. Accordingly, the grasshopper when held by the Christ Child is a symbol of the conversion of nations to Catholicism. This meaning is also derived from Proverbs 30:27: "The locust hath no king, yet they all go out by their bands," a passage early interpreted as referring to the nations formerly without Christ for their King. St. John the Baptist was said to have fed on locusts.
GRIFFIN: This mythic creature, usually depicted with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion, is used with two different and opposite meanings; on the one hand to represent the Saviour; on the other, because it is a combination of the preying of the eagle and the fierceness of the lion, to symbolize those who oppress and persecute Christians.
HARE/RABBIT: Lust. Hare/Rabbit at the feet: Victory over lust.
The hare, itself defenseless, is a symbol of men who put the hope of their salvation in the Christ and His Passion. A white hare is sometimes placed at the feet of the Virgin Mary to indicate her triumph over lust.
HOG: The hog is used to represent the demon of sensuality and gluttony. It is frequently shown as one of the attributes of St. Anthony Abbot, who is reputed to have vanquished this demon.
HORSE: In ancient times the horse was the emblem of the sun, as the ox was that of the moon. In the Renaissance, however, the horse was most often depicted as a symbol of lust. This interpretation is based on Jeremiah 5:8: "They are become as amorous horses and stallions, every one neighed after his neighbour's wife.."
HYENA: The unstable. Those who feed on false doctrine.