Mythical Animals in a Virgin Forest
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A fifteenth-century tapestry fragment showing a dense forest populated with real and imaginary creatures. A dragon with outstretched wings dominates the center, its toothed jaw open. Below it, a stag and an elephant stand among wildflowers. A small fox or dog crouches on the foliage behind the dragon, and birds perch in the upper branches. Turreted castles rise in the background between the trees. The palette is deep teal-blue and gold, with green and cream foliage filling every available space. Tapestries like this — called millefleurs or verdure depending on the density of background flora — hung in medieval châteaux and churches across Northern Europe.