Medieval Mythology

In this video we discuss medieval European mythology, which, unlike the mythology of the ancient and pre-Christian world, is not culture specific. This wide ranging set of beliefs on everything from cosmology to zoology was simply held to be science at the time, but today it looks more similar to the type of fantasy world one might find in a novel or RPG (Tolkien, Narnia, Elder Scrolls, etc.). This mythology involves a geocentric universe consisting of five basic elements, and includes a multitude of sentient non-human species, as well as the fantastic kingdom of Prester John. Many of these ideas continue to pop up in entertainment long after people have ceased to believe in them.

CS Lewis, in particular, was heavily influenced by this mythological belief system, and drew from it to populate many of the creatures in Narnia.

Sources:
-“The Book of Marvels and Travels,” by Sir John Mandeville (translated by Anthony Bale)
-“THE SPHERE OF SACROBOSCO,” by Iohannes de Sacrobosco (Translated by Lynn Thorndike, 1949)- https://williammorristile.com/assets/pdfs/De_Sphaera_English.pdf
https://www.theoi.com/Phylos/Skiapodes.html
History of Animals (Aristotle): http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/history_anim.mb.txt
https://www.pygmies.org/about/pygmy.php
http://theunexplainedmysteries.com/2020/01/29/blemmyes-headless-men/
https://danarehn.com/2021/05/23/cynocephali-the-dog-headed-race-a-brief-introduction/
Letter of Prester John Transcript - http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/presterjohn.html