Emily Owen
Peacham's emblem 170 "Zelus in Deum" (Zeal for God) consists of the allegorical winged figure Zeal as she gazes longingly toward heaven with a flame in her breast, behind whom stands a deer drinking from a cascading stream. These two main elements in the emblem draw a parallel between the deer's thirst for water and Zeal's desire to be closer to God. By incorporating the deer into the emblem, Peacham adds another dimension to its interpretation, for the deer was believed to possess many traits that represented religious symbolism.
Peacham bases this emblem on Psalm 42, of which the first verse reads, "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God" (New International Version). The direct comparison between Zeal, who, "with Breast enflam'd, and longing heartes desire" (Peacham, ln. 1), looks to heaven and,
…loathing what the world doth most admire,Upborne by Faith, ascendes above the skie:
Whereby Oh God, thy misteries we learne,
And beyond, our reasons fight discerne (Peacham, ln. 3-6).
Likewise, the deer, referred to as a hart, another term
for a female deer, "…doth long to tast/The
pearly-trickling streame, or Christall fount" (Peacham, ln.
7-8). Just as the deer longs to quench its thirst, Zeal
wishes to escape sin and be with the Lord, as demonstrated
in lines 9 and 10, "…the
soule, be Sinne pursu'de and chas'd,/Thee, thee, (oh Lord)
desires…" (Peacham).
The incorporation of the deer reflects a deeper knowledge of commonly-held beliefs about the animal's nature concerning its affinity to water, relationship with snakes, and longevity. In The History of Foure-footed Beasts, Edward Topsell writes that deer are not only swift upon the land, but also in the water. They were often believed to wade across water to change feeding-grounds, forming a supportive line and helping the young and weak deer in order to successfully cross the water. Water also helped rejuvenate and heal the deer, for, after encountering a snake, they would run to a spring and drink from it.
The deer's unique relationship with snakes was based on
an enmity that supposedly existed between the two creatures.
In order to overcome weakness, deer would sniff snakes out
of their holes and eat them, though it is was unknown if
this action solely stemmed from hatred or was performed for
medicinal purposes. Following the consumption of a snake, a
deer would drink from a spring and would lose all signs of
old age, such as its shaggy coat. When a deer was bitten by
a snake, it need only to eat Elaphoscum, also known as wild
dittany, hart's eye, and grace of God, in order to be cured
of the poison. Topsell writes that, "The whole nature and
disposition of every part of this beast is against poison
and venomous things" (131). Because the deer itself seemed
to repel poison, it was believed to have many useful
medicinal purposes related to snakes and venom: the antlers
could be burned to frighten away snakes; a fawn killed in
its mother's womb was a remedy for poisons; the blood of a
deer mixed with other substances would draw snakes from
their holes; and the deer's marrow would make an ointment to
protect against snake b
ites.
The deer was also hailed for its longevity and was thought to live for hundreds of years. The Egyptians believed that the deer lived to be at least seven hundred years old (Browne), and Topsell states that deer lived for 2,112 years (130). According to Sir Thomas Browne, the Hesoid contains a passage which proclaims the life of a deer to be 3,456 (Browne). Tests were conducted by Alexander the Great, who placed collars upon deer which, after one hundred years, showed no signs of aging. When the deer were rediscovered hundreds of years later, the collars were still intact. Both Pliny and Aristotle attributed the long lives of the deer to its lack of a "gall" in their liver, but Browne refutes their hypothesis, claiming that the gall actually resides in the "guts" of many animals, like the deer (Browne). As previously mentioned, deer could shed their old age by eating a snake and then drinking from a stream, becoming rejuvenated. Browne discourses at length about why these assumptions were flawed, citing Aristotle's observations about gestation and maturation periods, excessive breeding, and the identification of age through the teeth and horns (Browne). Although Browne refutes the possibility of such lengthy lives, it remains true that it was a commonly-held belief that the deer was characterized by incredible longevity.
These attributes of the deer take on an interesting symbolic significance when considered in a religious context. By comparing the three characteristics of water, snakes, and long life, a metaphor for a Christian ideal emerges where the deer represents a person. First, the relationship between deer and snake must be considered from a Biblical standpoint. Since the snake has traditionally been a symbol of sin because of the original sin in the Garden of Eden, the enmity between deer and snake is easily interpreted as how people should avoid and loathe sin.
In addition, water has long been a symbol for God and Christ, as demonstrated in Psalm 42:7, "Deep calls to deep in the roar of your [the Lord's] waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me." In addition, Jesus compares the Holy Spirit to a stream in John 7:37-39 when he proclaims,
'If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.' By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.
The third characteristic of the deer, a long life, can be considered in conjunction with the Christian belief that there is a promise of eternal life for believers because of Christ's sacrifice on the cross. The longevity of the deer reflects this eternity spent in heaven because the deer could be continually rejuvenated and live extremely long lives.
These three elements come together in relation to the
deer when the process of rejuvenation is considered. After
sniffing out a snake from its hole, the deer eats it, runs
to the stream and drinks water, and then loses all signs of
old age. Likewise, when an individual encounters sin (the
sn
ake),
she should go to Christ (the water) and confess this sin.
Through this confession and belief, she will be cleansed of
sin and granted eternal life. It should also be noted that
when a deer is actually bitten by a snake, one of the common
names for the plant that cures the venom is "grace of God,"
which directly elaborates the metaphor by indicating that
people are saved from sin by God's grace (Topsell, 126).
The deer has also been compared to members of the Christian community because the tendency of deer to cross water to find a new feeding ground. Likewise, Christians will exchange their earthly home for Heaven and during this journey they will support each other, like the deer aid one another during the crossing. The herd of deer is like a church congregation in this sense because they both help and provide good examples for each other. Pliny writes that deer swim across the water and where there is no land in sight, they are led by the scent of land. Similarly, though people cannot actually see God in this life, they are able to sense which moral direction their actions should follow. In addition, Christians should try to "leap" over sin, as deer leap over obstacles in their path.
Another curious characteristic of the deer concerns the obedience of the fawn to its mother. Fawns were called hinnuli, from innuere, which means "to nod" because they vanished at the merest nod from their mother (Aberdeen Bestiary). One of the Ten Commandments is to honor thy mother and father, which is exemplified by the fawns' obedience. Also, the young deer are taught immediately how to leap and flee from danger to safety of the den, just as Christians avoid sin and seek shelter in God (Pliny).
Peacham's emblem 170 is given more depth when interpreted with this background on the deer, for not only is the deer quenching its thirst for water, but it is being rejuvenated, representing the removal of sin. As Zeale desires to experience God and achieve a relationship with Christ, the deer has already done so by drinking from the water, which Peacham even describes as the "Christall fount" (ln. 8). Psalm 42:2 describes Zeale's desire perfectly: "My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?"
-Emily Owen
References
"Aberdeen University Library: The Bestiary Project" by Michael Arnott [Online] URL:
http://www.clues.abdn.ac.uk:8080/besttest/alt/comment/best_toc.html (1998)
The History of Foure-footed Beasts by Edward Topsell and Conrad Gesner (London, 1607)
The History of the World: The Eighth Book of the History of Nature by Pliny (translated
by Philemon Holland in 1601)
Pseudodoxia Epidemica Book III, Chapter IX, "On the Deer" by Sir Thomas Browne
(1646)
