Zirc Bestiary

First page (fol. 286r) depicts lion and panther

The Zirc Bestiary (Latin: Bestiarium Zircense, Hungarian: zirci bestiárium; Országos Széchényi Könyvtár Cod. Lat. 506) is a 15th-century Hungarian illuminated manuscript copy of a medieval bestiary, a book describing the appearance and habits of a number of familiar and exotic animals, both real and legendary. The animals' characteristics are frequently allegorized, with the addition of a Christian moral. The Latin-language work was kept in the Cistercian Zirc Abbey, now it belongs to the property of the National Széchényi Library (OSZK).