Biblical Bum Trumpets, Lewd Nuns, and Other Naughty Medieval Marginalia
Just some medieval scribes keeping things interesting
Today’s comic is inspired by the painstaking work of medieval scribes, who worked for hours and hours a day copying down the holy word:
Ah, the good word!
Most of the images in the above comic were inspired by actual images from medieval manuscripts. The bulk of these were from religious texts—the Bible, psalters (which is just the book of Psalms, excerpted as its own book), or a Book of Hours, which included elements of scriptures, hymns, and prayers.
Because the printing press was anywhere from a few decades to a few centuries away when these books were produced, medieval texts were all copied out by hand—usually by monks or nuns. Most of them spent upwards of six hours per day copying, writing, and drawing.
It’s no wonder these books were full of weird demons, defecation, monsters, bum trumpets, naked clergy, lewd nuns, and anthropomorphic animals.
Another reason these artists might have felt comfortable including such… nonreligious content was because most books were read privately. It was so difficult to produce a book that Bibles, Psalters, and Book of Hours would not have been accessible to the average churchgoer—they would have either been read by members of the clergy, or by wealthy patrons who commissioned books for their collections. Some scholars think that the style of marginalia in any given book could have reflected the personalities or interests of the people who paid to have these books made.
Just think about that the next time you see a scene like this in a medieval manuscript:
Or this:
The scribes are just giving folks what they want.
Scholars also think that marginalia could have emerged as a type of commentary on the rigid class structure of medieval Europe. Often marginalia depicts people in power—kings, bishops, other clergy—in demeaning or otherwise humiliating scenarios. It could have been a way to poke fun at the establishment, to get in some kicks at the expense of the folks above you in the Great Chain of Being.
Because artists and illuminators worked with their hands, they were considered laborers, and were somewhere in the lower rungs of society. That might also be why they enjoyed a good poop joke or two, or why they included bawdy sex scenes, or other drawings of folks behaving in generally un-genteel ways.
In other instances, marginalia seems to draw attention to a specific passage in the text. This may be why so many bums include trumpets—they’re just there to let you know that this is an important message.
Straight from the… mouths?? of angels?
It’s only been over the last few decades that scholars have studied medieval marginalia in earnest. For centuries, these little bum doodles were dismissed as trivial, but now they’re being analyzed with the same attention and care as the texts themselves.
There’s a really terrific interview with Kaitlin Manning, an associate at B & L Rootenberg Rare Books and Manuscripts, where she talks in detail about what these drawings might mean and why they’re significant. The article is delightfully entitled Naughty Nuns, Flatulent Monks, and Other Surprises of Sacred Medieval Manuscripts. If you’re as interested in these funky little drawings as I am, you’ll love this interview. It also has more images of bizarre marginalia that I haven’t included here, so give it a look.
Thanks so much for being here. I hope you enjoyed this comic, and that you don’t mind a bit of levity after my more serious post earlier this week. I’m doing my best to get by in a cruel world.
Don’t begrudge me my bum trumpets.
All my love,
🖤Becca Lee, the Haunted Librarian🖤
This historical information actually feels very relatable to my sense of humor, my work process, and my work relationships, TBH. I'm just saying... I might have fit in really nicely with these monks and nuns.
LOVE this!!! Never knew....