Since the beginning of Macabre Gadgets, we have been drawn to all things bizarre and eerie. Under our careful eye, the most grotesque objects become beautiful jewelry. But there are plenty of things around us that don't require our translation — things that already carry the dual nature of being terrifying and absolutely breathtaking. Beasts are a perfect example. They can be almost anything, but they are rarely ugly.
There is a sort of natural harmony in all kinds of beasts. The very real lion and the fairy-tale dragon can both hold this kind of majestic beauty, despite their horrifying nature.
They are always elusive. The chances of seeing a dragon or a hydra are close to zero; the same goes for a real-life wild animal, sadly for an entirely different reason.
We are not trying to create a single mythological narrative, but to celebrate all kinds of beasts — real or not — for what they are: beings of nature, deities of the forests and oceans, in a world that we humans have abandoned and almost forgotten.
A reminder that wonders are still around us.
That is how Bestiary came to be.
What and Why
So what is it exactly?
The concept of the bestiary is not a novelty, and even if you are not familiar with it, you would probably assume that it is some sort of catalogue of living creatures. And you'd be absolutely right.
Beasts of all sorts, real or mythical, sometimes insects and even plants, carefully described and often drawn by distant human beings with fantastical imaginations.
But why were they made? The answer wouldn't be so simple.
One of the earliest existing examples of a written work that might be called a bestiary — the Physiologus — was written in Greek in Alexandria, Egypt, sometime between the 2nd and 4th centuries CE. It contained about fifty descriptions of mythical and real animals, along with plants and stones.
But what else was in this book, and why was it made?
A humanly boring, systematically organised list of unicorns and dragons, catalogued page by page? An attempt to satisfy the curious mind?
Not at all.
At the time it was written, the tension between pagans and Christians was extremely high. Both sides battled not for territories, but for minds. The Physiologus was, if not propaganda, then definitely a powerful tool for spreading Christian beliefs.
Every creature contained not only a description, but also a sort of allegory — a moral related to Christian mythology. The unknown author of the Physiologus took pagan creatures and tamed them to tell the story of Christ.
In this way, the phoenix was no longer just a creature of fire. It also gained a new purpose: to represent the resurrecting nature of Christ.
Sirens and centaurs were no longer terrifying creatures from mystical, wonderful lands. They became rather sulky and pitiful representations of heresy and hypocrisy because they were "double-minded."
The fierce and extremely aggressive unicorn — a beast that ancient Greeks believed was as real as a horse — suddenly developed a soft spot for human virgins.
Even pelicans and vipers weren't spared from the duty of contributing to Christian storytelling.
The purpose of this document was not simply to educate the curious about the world around them. It was an ideological tool, using ancient pagan symbols to explain a new religion — in much the same way Christianity adopted the pagan blueprint in many other aspects of its development.
Evolution of the Beasts
Later on, dozens of translations of this document were made, with minor and major additions along the way. But the purpose remained much the same: to underline the purity of Christians and the wickedness of "others," depending on how likable the creature was.
In some examples, the creature might experience a total makeover.
The panther, for example, started as a nearly holy symbol representing the resurrection of Christ because, according to ancient beliefs, it slept for three days after a meal.
Probably even for early Christians, this seemed like a rather weak connection, so they slowly moved the panther into the realm of seductive sensual pleasures.
Since then, it has gained a mostly negative meaning in bestiary tradition.
The bestiary went even further with the lion — the description of its behavior was used to present it as both Christ and the Devil.
Macabre Gadgets' Bestiary
Our Bestiary is also full of mythical and real beasts, but our purpose is neither to catalogue them nor to convince anyone of the superiority of one belief system over another.
We celebrate them simply because they deserve to be celebrated.
We gather these majestic creatures from mythology, folklore, art and the natural world, looking equally at the impossible and the familiar. A dragon and a deer can belong to the same world. A wolf, a hare, a bird, a serpent or an insect can be just as fascinating as any creature invented by mythology.
These pieces are inspired by stories of mythical beasts, but also by watching the natural world around us — where wolves and deer remind us that we are not really ruling this world.
We are simply sharing it.
Explore the Bestiary
Mythological Creatures — Fauns, satyrs, unicorns, sirens, griffins and the impossible beasts of ancient mythology.
Animal Jewelry — Panthers, wolves, ravens, lions, foxes, deer and the majestic inhabitants of the natural world.
Animal Skulls — Raven skulls, bird skulls, ram skulls and the bones that remain when the beast is gone.