Reynard the Fox - Reintje van der Schalk - markies van Eiertruiven grootmeester van het kippenhok en vrijheer van de - 1910

This is a rare Dutch edition of Reynard the Fox, a classic medieval allegory. The book, titled 'Reintje van der Schalk,' was published in 1910 by D. Bolle in Rotterdam. It is the 7th improved edition and measures 10cmx17cm. The book is in good condition, though it is a paperback version with some tears and repairs to the cover. All of the illustrations are present. The book also has a stamp on the front free endpaper from Bunny Kelk, a Dutch artist. Reynard the Fox is a cycle of medieval allegorical fables that are popular in Dutch, English, French, and German literature. The earliest existing versions of the cycle date back to the second half of the 12th century. The genre was popular throughout the late Middle Ages, as well as in chapbook form throughout the early modern period. The stories centre on the main character Reynard, an anthropomorphic red fox, trickster figure. His adventures usually involve him deceiving other anthropomorphic animals to his own benefit or attempting to evade their retaliatory efforts. His main enemy and victim across the cycle is his uncle, the wolf, Isengrim. While Reynard’s character appears in later works, the core stories were written in the Middle Ages by multiple authors and are often seen as parodies of medieval literature such as courtly romance and chansons de geste, as well as a satire of political and religious institutions. [1] The rogue fox, Reynard, lives in a society of other talking animals (lion, bear, wolf, donkey, etc.), making the stories an epic bestiary. [2] The original copies were written in Old French and have since been translated into many different languages. But the tales of Reynard come from all over Europe, and each retelling has details that are specific to its region. [3] The stories, wherever they take place, are designed to represent the society around them and incorporate the social structures around them, such as a noble court. While the authors take many liberties in telling the stories, not all the satire is intended to be rude or malicious in intent.