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Call for questions: MEDIEVAL SNAILS (Patreon)

Published:
2025-03-22 03:19:35
Imported:
2026-06

Content

That's right. Medieval snails. When the ologist suggested the topic, I had no idea either. But it's really weird and I think we should all learn together.

So. Medieval snails. Illustrations of snails appear over and over in medieval manuscripts. And frequently they're fighting armored (human) knights. Wtf? If you have any questions about this bizarre period of art history, let me know in the comments.

If you want a little more background first, read this article from The Conservation.

Deadline: Monday, March 24 at 5pm PST

 

Comments

Paige McLachlan

Why does medieval art/snails look like *that*? Why did they look so strange? THANK YOU !!

Anna Thompson

This is why I love Ologies! After 7+ years there are still depths of obscure science to plum!

Priyal

I'd ask why. But then, why not? I must know more.

Kae Gatensby

How do we know so much about such old snails??

Ken Haddad

What other weird or random insects or bugs appeared in ancient art?

Paige McLachlan

What’s the weirdest snail marginalia you’ve ever seen hahahahah

Anna Thompson

Are you able to trace snail species movement (migrations, relocations etc) through the art or is it mostly fantastical depictions?

Kelowna Ostwald

My friend Madeline would like to know if they wore any type of armor?

Breahna Lesemann

Hell yeah! Is it because the shells are like armor? Also, were snails that big back then or is that just like a big fish story sort of thing?

Hadley

Were these snails a hot topic because of their use for making a rich, purple dye? (Not sure on the correct time periods for this question so forgive me if it’s totally wrong lol)

Lizzy Martinez

Wow ok ok this is so weird and cool and my husband is also like wow can't wait to listen. So my question - When or why did they stop including snails in artwork of this style? Did one year they retired snails and that was it? Edit: I see they stopped for a bit but they are still present. So I'm curious to learn more about the decline!

Honeybee

Are the French eating escargot as revenge for the knights killed by snail opponents?

Baylee Bug

I did a project in college that I titled “Why Is Medieval Art So Weird?” and there were countless snail depictions. As well as penises. And odd cats. I came to theorize that they were all warnings due to the rise in Christianity/Catholicism… What are your thoughts on this madness??

Raja

Whoa. Actually? Whoa. Okay, I'll bite: What is the Achille's heel of the medieval snail? (Raja rhymes with papaya)

Meaghan Ratcliffe

i immediately had to click on this i’m so intrigued

Jessica Meditz

We cover marginalia in NY undergrad Intro to Humanities course and I am DELIGHTED you are doing this!!

Ellen

I’ve heard it’s an allegory for the struggles the monks had with snails in their gardens, any truth to that?

Alena Grilla

So is this like how we all drew that S in our notebooks in elementary school? But the medieval version? I seriously love that this is going to be an episode

Meaghan Ratcliffe

so is it like cuteness aggression?? like oo lil baby snail 🥰 wanna STAB

Chrysalis Ashton

I have so many questions...but I don't know what they are yet. 😆 Very excited to listen to this! Snails are so cool, I would put them in my medieval art too if I was a medieval artist 😅

AB

Finally! I read about this years ago and it’s been haunting me. Is it a metaphor? Did they just think they were neat? Are the snails big or are the people tiny?

Nicky G

One very important question: Huh?

Dig

Tyrion purple? Technically red? What is that?

Dig

Or, moreover, whoudst ye olden snails have been drawn using the colors from thyne owned shelles??

Doxx

So many cultures of the world enjoy snails. From French Escargot to Nigerian Pepper Snails it’s all delicious. Did people eat these medieval snail or were they just for decoration? I can only think of one reason humans would want such a big snail as the one in the image. A recourse like food or snail slime as lube or most likely; war.

Michele Smith

What kind of snails are they? Are they all the same type of snail?

Hannah Joy

Why were they so scared of snails?

AussieColin

Ok, I have to know if any of the illustrations included The Rabbit of Caerbannog! 😂

olivewing

i am so obsessed with these and tell anyone who would listen this wonderful information, i am so excited to learn more! But I must know, why has this perfect art form fallen out of popularity and can we bring it back?

olivewing

specifically talking about cat snails!! cat snails are the best creation ever

AussieColin

Ooh! Most of the manuscripts would be done by monks... in Monasteries... that grew their own food in gardens. So what garden pests are they going to really hate? Snails of course. 🤣

the ren you know

Were snails a representation of someone for the poor (vassals) to be mad at so they wouldn't direct their anger at the wealthy lords above them? Or maybe the monks painting the snail battles were just pissed about their snap peas being eaten? OR maybe Big Escargot™️ was running an anti-snail campaign for profit. So many questions...

Lizzy

Were people eating snails back then? Are these doodles proof of a hungry hungry populace? Also, do we know which ancient myth inspired these doodles? (Arthur, Gilgamesh, Beowulf, some secret fourth thing)

roni 💥

this was such an interesting notification to get on my apple watch lol

Cynthia Cinnabar

What was the snail situation like in medieval Europe? Did people frequently encounter snails, and if so, in situations that would encourage them to imagine these marginalia? Were snails considered pests? Were there species about that were toxic to humans?

Caroline

Omg yessss I love marginalia and especially the battle snails! Could you please ask about other funky looking animals in the margins? Effed up cats is a great one, and somewhat baffling because... they *had* cats! Versus, say, a hyena or an elephant, where the scribe is just imagining critters based on many times removed descriptions. As a side note, tumblr is my friend for medieval tidbits and if you search the tag "maniculum bestiaryposting" people are drawing animals based on medieval descriptions with the animal name changed to mimic the job of the poor scribe - whether you can guess the animal from the description is like 50/50, it's great

Alyssa Berg

My partner and I were in England and walking home from the pub one night when we suddenly realized we were surrounded by literally thousands and thousands of snails blanketing every surface. It’s been seven years and we still talk about these snails ALL the time. Like however many snails you’re picturing right now, double it and then double it again. It was a formative moment for us. Has anyone considered that snails were just so prolific in ancient times that they were drawn as one giant armored snail to represent their fortitude??? Sorry for the tangent but it was seriously…SO many snails.

Hannah Gorrie

Did the battle snail marginalia follow a storyline and form a timeline, or was each illustration independent?

Hannah Gorrie

Were snails depicted fighting actual people or was it all fiction? Was it a way the monks threw shade at particular knights to show them losing life and limb to a snail?

Vera Axelrod

When did the snail drawings die out and why?

Hannah Gorrie

For how long were medieval snails a thing? Was it the fad of a single generation or did it down a century?

Sleepy John

What’s the win/loss ratio of snails vs. everything else?

Erin Everton

Was this all just ye ol gardening advice?

Felipe Jimenez

I saw the weird images of knights fighting snails in medieval manuscripts in the link that Alie posted, but I was wondering if this was just a thing in certain places, or did artists all over Europe do this? And… why snails, of all things?”

Rachel Cannon

Ahhh, this is wild! I went to graduate school for Museum Studies and designed an exhibit about snails as a way to make my 400-hour internship stuffing (dead) snails in vials more interesting. I got super into snails in the margins of medieval manuscripts, as well as modern day snail art. 🐌 I came to understand that they represent sloth, one of the deadly sins? Is this true? Flim-flam?

Nicole Robb

The Patreon notification popped up on my phone and I thought to myself, damn I really read that wrong. Medieval Snails would be super cool though… much to my surprise, it IS Medieval Snails!!! No questions, only excitement!

Lauren Allegra

Does this have anything to do with the snail tears used to dye purple royal robes?? Read about this in Color by Victoria Finlay and think about it more often than I’d like to admit.

mish the fish

do people get tattoos of medieval snails?

Addie Cappello she her

I think for the first time in the history of me asking questions for Ologies… I could not, at first glance, articulate a single question in my mind because it was blown; my mouth was agape at the title for this episode….. I just want to know absolutely everything. Was someone high as a kite when drawing these pictures? Are the snails really big or the knights really small? Where can one purchase Medieval snail art? What, if any, biology is tied to the snails depicted in the art? Is there crossover between medieval ecology and medieval art here? Were snail diseases killing people (did they even know about zoonotic diseases back then???) and the art is depicting an interpretation of the “battle” against the snails? I’ll be honest, I’ve been excited for episodes before, but this one’s got me on the edge of my seat; literally. I sat down on my couch in the middle of doing something to check this out and ask questions. How did the person who’s going to talk about this learn about medieval snails? I would NEVER have known about this without ologies. My first thought when I saw the episode title (and read it over twice to make sure my adhd brain wasn’t playing tricks on me with the words) I visioned little gastropods in chain mail and lord of the rings helmets and I truly can’t unsee this glory. THANK YOU FOR THIS EPISODE The world needs more of this right now xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Katy

Not a question, but someone in the chainmaille reddit sub I'm in just recently posted some maille armor they made for their pet snail. And it was adorable.

Lena Gwen

Does it have anything to do with snails eating crops? I’m not really a gardener but I do know that snails can munch through your whole vegetable patch. Could they have been a danger to food supply?

Neal Greenstein

I understand some snails reproduce asexually and others need a pair to procreate. Did both types exist way back when? I keep an aquarium and have one snail I purchased. A Nerite snail.he has remained a solitary nerite snail. I also have live plants which always come with hitchhiker nuisance snails. One of those guys WILL result in 100s. They are neat creatures tho!! Have you ever seen a snail floating in the water column? So cool

Ruby Gordon

How?! Why?? When? Did this all start....

Alex

What was the public opinion of snails like back in medieval times? How did people generally interact with snails back then? Were they a food source, some kind of disease vector, admired from afar for being generally amazing and badass? What kinds of snails were around at the time/being used as inspiration for these drawings in manuscripts?

Maria Whamond

What was the mythological significance of snails around the world then? How has it changed today?

Colleen Sellwood

Have you read the Inheritance cycle (Eragon) with the scary giant snails?

mickakov

When and why did snail art go out of fashion? I’ve only known this art subject to exist for the last two minutes and I’m already mourning its loss.

Guido

What is the oldest manuscript with this kind of miniature? Why have we stopped being this creative with our books? Were these illustrations considered humorous?

Bridget Schraders

This is what I want to know. And which medieval snail would make the best tattoo, because now I think I need one…

Jonny Surridge

FTQA: What can medieval snail art tell us about perception and relationships with nature more broadly in the period?

Susan G

I have so many questions and a lot of them are what why how tell me everything please!

Susan Singley

When I first read the title of this episode I was 1000% sure I'd read it wrong and was sad because an episode about Medieval Snails would have been EPIC. Now, I'm super-excited and I have sooo many questions. Did medieval copyists just really like drawing snails and their tiny coiled shells? Did snails represent some kind of spiritual enemy or were they really just a biblical-level threat to farmers and gardeners? Exactly how much weed did these monks grow and consume? What else is lurking in the margins of these manuscripts? Why don't modern books have these delightfully weird illustrations just hanging out? And finally, I have to know the ologists entire life story leading up to an obsession with medieval snails and their history of oppression by the warmongering knights. Because, look at them, they just want to chill and eat my cabbages

Pavka34

I’m not sure where to start. Do they think one monk got bored or wanted to spice up a manuscript with something ridiculous and funny and another monk said “that’s awesome” and it snowballed from there?

Pavka34

Is there any significance to the images of the snails dominating the knights?

Pavka34

Okay, now I’m reading it could represent the poor fighting against the aristocracy or even female sexuality. Or is it just monks trying to make a boring document more interesting (not that sex or fighting the power isn’t interesting).

Anthony Richards

So were medieval snails, part of folklore Or religious stories of the time that they would be depicted battling knights? Or what is the symbolism of snails from that time?

BolognaShoes

SAME. I just googled. They’re amazing

BolognaShoes

Less about snails, more about illuminated manuscripts— why? I love them and took a lot of art history but have never fully understood why so many people spent so much time making these amazingly beautiful books.

Mini Minnie

Were they forced into oppressive serfdom and crept along saying things like how fare thee and by my troth?

Blobfish guy

did the mediavel people just hate snails or did they see them as some crazy monster

Spencer Parks

I never knew I needed to learn about a subject so much. My question is also "WTF?!"

William Ganschinietz

If the battling of the snails drawings were only found in French literature, the French had the ideal solution - escargot

Dr. Niki

Are all bestiaries based on a similar text? What's the gist of that text?

Olivier Calas

Is that when the enemy would come out of its shell in slow mo? Medieval times were weird in many ways but the escargot thing has the French in me totally baffled…

Christian Swenson

Very weird....! And, okay, Are there biblical stories about snails, and/or how do snails show up in earlier mythology and folk tales previous to these times?

Olga Kolesnikova

I love weird medieval guys so I feel well versed in this topic, but you can never have have enough snails

Cate Muenker

I’m thinking the monks didn’t like the snails eating the veggies in their gardens and drew funny depictions of their plight. I wonder if they were the 1st to put beer traps to kill snails! 🍻 🐌

Hope

i’ve heard the snail fights are possibly medieval satire? is that true? also, why did they draw cats like that

Piper Warnick

I have a question about the particular picture that you shared here. I want to know more about the shield and the fact that it looks like a face. Is that common or snail fighting specific?

Matt Hirschl

Did the medieval snail fights appears in a specific geographical area or throughout the world?

Patrick Foye

What did the snails represent? Did the theme or meaning vary from artist to artist? Or did the slimy snail usually symbolize a mythology or archetype that already existed in society, culture, or theology (cough cough the ever present and overbearing church)?

Carly Alti

I can hardly wait!!!!

Bennett Vanderbosch

If I were to design a snail warrior for Dungeons & Dragons, what kind of personality traits or abilities should it have?

Sonjabird

This is crazy! I can’t wait to hear a whole episode on this! My question/observation- when did the French start eating escargot, and were they battling these fierce beasts in order to dip them in butter?

CubedWombat

What is with the rabbits riding the snails? Was Monty Python more historically accurate than we ever thought!?! Also, why rabbits AND snails?

Her Ladyship Jen

Are there any recognizable crests or other imagery on the snails that might indicate a medieval sick burn?

Emily Krieger

i am in awe of this niche ology and eagerly await it. also, this would be a great band name.

Madeline DLC

YYEEE! I love medieval marginalia beasts! If anyone wants an idea of what some common beasts are I highly recommend checking out the medieval bestiary. Really good creatures with sources in there. I personally love the hydrus creature. It kills crocodiles from the inside out. https://bestiary.ca/beasts/beastalphashort.htm and if anyone wants to see a printed comic paying tribute to marginalia you can check out Erin Roseberry’s Basilisk. It has beautiful colors on it and refers to several real medieval illustrations https://roseberrycomix.com/#basilisk

Brenda Graham

Besides the combative relationship, did Medieval peeps eat snails?

Rebekah Fitchett

Do we get rabbits vs snails in Medieval marginalia? Also: why they gotta draw so many dicks?

BENJAMIN

Did people keep snails as pets back then? Also, were there any famous royal people who particularly enjoyed this snail art??

Kristen

Were they eaten before battle so the might of the snail would be transferred to the soldiers?

Atlas They-Them

Do you know anyone willing and able to create a medieval/bardcore version of the hit song Disco Snails? 😄

Obilot

I just want to know if I know the Ologist!

Michelle Cabrera

Hi! I've always had an interest in this time period. I'm a musician and love both sacred and secular music of this period. I love the fashion that was introduced by way of the Crusades. And the influence on food! Couple of questions. Have researchers been able to find an earliest text with these drawings? Or have they been able to determine an abbey or monastery where the earliest texts were written? Also, were any songs written about battles between knights and snails?

Jordan

Do the snails in medieval art seem to be based on actual species of snails? If so, do they seem to be snails from near where the manuscripts were created?

Jordan

Who tended to create manuscripts with medieval snails? Were there any illuminators or scribes who just seemed to add snails to everything? Follow up: does there seem to be any con section between the gender of the manuscript creator or commissioner and presence of snails in manuscripts?

Matt Thompson

Were Medieval snails only in Europe or are there Middle East, Africa, or Asian depictions of snails during that time period?

Molly Logsdon

I can’t believe this is the topic that activated me to ask my first question after being a patron for several years, but here we are…why are they??? What was the obsession at the time, did snails hold some kind of ominous or mystical significance?? Is there a particular artist known for including/featuring snails w creepy little uncanny valley faces??

Pam Murray

My question is just… WHY? I am fascinated and can’t wait to listen to this episode.

Pseudonym Jones IV

And if they are a European phenomenon, are they most often found in any particular scriptorium?

Erin Powell

Only question: wtf? Tell me everything.

Ma's Nature Walks

Soo...any midieval snail recipes? They had to have eaten them.

Amy Johnson

Utterly fascinated. Can’t wait

zanabanana

I’m wondering snails had a larger presence in the world hundreds of years ago? Like were there more snails in the 14th century than now? Or maybe the snails were bigger than modern snails? Do we even know???

KatieLady

So medieval snails in the margins of 1300’s manuscripts are basically the Cool S’s in the margins of our school notebooks-nobody knows why but damn do they look good? History truly repeating itself.

Ja Jo: Art & Craft

Could the snail fascination be garden related? Do they have a ton of snails in the regions that drew them?

Kathryn

How can I become a medieval snail-ologist? Do I have to be an art historian or can I be, say, a very excited librarian?

Earl of Greymalkin

1) Were medieval people eating snails? Were there particular ways to prepare them as food? Are any of the species in quesiton poisonous? 2) Are the drawing of snails identifiable as particular species? 3) Were there any practical uses for snail materials? Were medieval people doing snail trail face masks? 4) Were snails seen as pests for agriculture? Were there snail pest control methods? 5) What is the biggest any of these snails could get in real life? 6) How were slugs viewed compared to snails? Any slugs depicted in the margins as embarrassed snails perhaps? 7) What was used for ink and pigments? How much time would it have taken to doodle these snails and how much material value does it add to the text? 8) Was it just a couple scholars who were snail fans doodling all the snails or was it a widespread motif? Was it a people from a particular region who were doing it? 9) Are the snails usually depicted as protagonists or villians? Are there any folktales with important snail characters? 10) Are the snails supposed to be really big or the people drawn with them really small? ;D 11) Did anyone use a snail in their family/company/city crest or anything?

Chloe

Hello! Do you think the snail vs knight doodle trend back then is similar to how we all drew the little S on school assignments and notes? Is there a study of human doodles?

Rachel

Are there any other creatures similarly depicted? Did the snails have any other animal buddies they were on the same team as?

Anastasia Press

When did snails STOP being all the rage in art? And why?

Clara Nungässer

Why such calm, placid and slow animals were depicted as aggressive beasts to defeat ?

Jae Steinbacher

Not a question, I just love that you’re covering this topic

Capybara Gall

A few questions: 1. What were the first and last known instances of snail drawings in books? 2. Geographically, where did the snails start and approximately when did they spread to different countries and regions? Was it spread by people being trained or learning from existing drawers? Or was it from people receiving the books and deciding to copy it? If we know how do we know - were these snails ever discussed in letters? 3. Was there an evolution in the fashion/clothing or armor of the snails and knights? 4. Were these drawings in illuminated manuscripts or were they in books that did not otherwise have drawings?

Maria Whamond

Did people keep snails as pets? Or did they just come across them in the garden

Taylor campbell

FTQA were there any medical uses of snails that we know of? Do they represent an illness?

Mouse Paxton

I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS TOPIC I CANNOT WAIT Was it just one prolific artist drawing the snails or was this a trend amongst numerous artists? Do snails appear in other Medieval works of art outside of the manuscripts? Did snails occupy an important place in Medieval culture or did the trend start with just some random person who really really liked drawing snails? Do you think modern writings would be improved with the presence of snail drawings? Which snail drawing would you get a tattoo of (or an art print of if you don't do tattoos)? Do you have a favourite species of snail? Not snail-related but have you seen the animated movie The Secret of Kells? I would be curious to hear your thoughts.

GhoulNextDoor

Does the ologist have a favorite or selection of favorite snails?

GhoulNextDoor

What did the snails mean?? Did they represent a group of people? A belief? A vice? Or were people just having fun?

GhoulNextDoor

Is there any evidence of snails causing problems in medieval life such as destruction of crops? Why were the snails such a formidable foe?

Erin White

1: the obvious: ...why? 2: Were there any artistic conventions that all medieval snails had to follow? Like, 'they all must spiral' or something? 3: are medieval snails always recognisable as a snail, or are there a bunch of things that looks unrelated that are all supposed to be snails, in the way that medieval whale illustrations run the gamut from actually whale-like to wtf-catfish-lions?

Kiki’s Delivery Service

Medieval snails. I mean, I get it. Slimy softies who wear fashionable armor to protect themselves against the terrors of the world. They are us; we are them. And since armor was trending in ye olden days, snails were totally with the times.

Hex

Why are there a bunch of other animals depicted in snail shells? I have medieval illustrations tattooed and the sneer (snail deer) has always been a favorite of mine

Lynette Dávila

Can't think of a single question but please ask this!

Lynette Dávila

This one ask this one. I had pet snails in college and have some in our fish tank right now.

Lynette Dávila

All these questions are great. Please ask number 2.

Dave Langlinais

Did they choose snails so that they couldn't escape the page they were on?

Kait

Were there cultural associations with snails that transcended geography, like from England to France etc? And did they have the same species of snails present? OH! Did fossils come into play? Were nautilus or other swirly shelly fossils mistaken for Ancient Mystical Snails?

Kait

They all seem to be almost guarding a portal. If they don’t have weapons, is it just their shell as armor that they use in battle? Or is it more of an “answer my snaily riddles three” situation??

Eli Loves Vultures

I second this: were there historical events during this time that were snail-related? As a knight, did getting yourself drawn fighting a snail mean you were cooler than your knight colleagues who didn't fight gastropods?

Athina Anastasiou

First time questions asker: To what extent can the depiction of medieval marginalia in manuscripts provide insights into medieval humor? What we often see are grotesque illustrations (nuns picking penises from trees, people with trumpets attached to their behinds). Are they, therefore, a reflection of medieval humor?

CurtisDawg

Maybe the marginalia artists were oppressed gardeners. The powerless peasantry was being defeated by an onslaught of invasive gastropods until the heroic Sir Beurre (Butter) and Sir Ail (Garlic) arrive to vanquish the enemy pests. Liberty, Equality, Gastronomy!

Philipp Meder

So excited for this one! Found out about this topic on Reddit a couple years back. My question: Surely there’s other kinds of weird animals that also make an appearance in medieval books. What’s your favorite non-snail animal or item that you have seen?

Rachel Guthrie

Were the snails revered or were they seen as true enemies? Did they represent another type of enemy at the time?

Christi Farrar

First time question asker (wheee!): I consulted with my coworker, Anna, who once gifted our family some pet snails (super fun pets, btw). Her first question was, "What's the hierarchy of military might among animals in medieval illustrations? Are rabbits stronger than snails?" We also want to know if it's possible that snails represented some sexual innuendo, or was it just more mundane and the spiral of shells was an easy way to clean pen nibs and paint brushes?

Shannon Copley

First time question asker (& illuminated snail battle enthusiast)! The linked article mentioned a carving of a snail on a portal at Lyon cathedral - where else are snails found at this time across different mediums? Are they most common in illuminated form or are they seen with any frequency in carving (architectural, jewelry -especially ivory- rare surviving wood pieces)? Are they mentioned in texts, like bestiaries or poetry, and are particular attributes ascribed to them there? And lastly, are there medicinal/magical properties associated with their shells that either line up with or run counter to these battle scenes? Thank you thank you for exploring one of my all time favorite subsets of anything ever!!

Andy Pepper

This is wild! Were snails sought after for medicinal purposes (like their ground-up shells) that made them precious and worthy of slaying?

Andy Pepper

Also noticing these snails are a modest size compared to other medieval beasts? What's that about? Were they like Level 1 bosses compared to dragons?

Claire Pavlovic

Ugh- I missed the deadline, but I’ll go ahead and post my question with hope: what does your ologist think of the argument that these seemingly bizarre hybrid creatures were not supposed to represent concrete animals, but rather to serve as a sort of visual metaphorical language for a population that was only limitedly literate? This is like world colliding because one of the only other podcasts I listen to is wired medieval guys!!

T Noz

Have wondered about the supply chain for the inks that medieval scribes used. Have made the typical oak gall black ink from the galls that grow on the oaks on my property. How did they get the ingredients for blue, red, yellow inks? Did the Church run some sort of courier service to get the stuff to the scribes in monasteries across Europe?

Sherry D. Ramsey

Just wanted to say that I literally rescued an orchid (grocery store variety) from my mother-in-law’s trash nine years ago (she thought it would not rebloom). I repotted it in orchid bark and generally ignore it except for sparse waterings. It blooms faithfully every spring and the blooms last—no exaggeration—at least 4 months! Sometimes there’s a second set of blooms on the same stem after the first ones fade. Best trash orchid ever! :)