Heinrich Steinhöwel’s 1477 collection of Aesop’s Fables starts out with a Life of Aesop. Below are illustrations from that section of the book with links to the original scans.
The Domestic Snake
A poor Man befriended a Snake who ate crumbs from the table. One day he cut the snake then begged forgiveness. Snake was willing but said to be careful as he might some day forget.
He who harms someone should henceforth be suspicious.
Heinrich Steinhöwel (Of the Poor Man and the Snake)
Perry #573
The Wicked Thief and The Sun
The Sun sought a wife but people implored Jupiter to deny the wedding as sons of the Sun would cause hardship. Jupiter agreed. The story prevented people from seeking a wife for a thief thinking it would change his ways.
Evil often promotes evil.
Heinrich Steinhöwel (Of the Wicked Thief and the Sun)
The Dog and The Shadow
[Read more…] about The Dog and The ShadowA dog carrying food crossed a bridge and sees its reflection. Wanting the reflection’s food the dog drops his. Ooops.
If you covet all, you may lose all.
A Wolf, Kid, and Goat
[Read more…] about A Wolf, Kid, and GoatA Goat went to pasture and told her Kid to not open the door without seeing a beard. Wolf asked to come in but Kid could not see a beard and was safe.
A hypocrite can usually be found out.
Aesop’s Fables Home Page
Throughout history fables have been a popular method of giving instruction. Fables contain a short narrative that seeks to illustrate a hidden message. Generally, fables use animals or objects as part of the narrative yet the message is designed to apply to humans. By doing this, the fabulist is not perceived as the teacher and this reduces any bias the listeners might have against the person. The most famous fabulist would be Aesop who most date around 620 B.C. Many fables are attributed to Aesop, but it’s unclear how many he actually wrote; indeed, his historical existence as a person is under question. I’ve collected many of them here for your enjoyment. A number of translations were found and the fables collected. Several different translations and interpretations of the same fable may be found on many of the pages here; including, now and again, a simplified version I wrote.
[Read more…] about Aesop’s Fables Home Page