Ox, Rochester Bestiary, c.1230
The ox's primary symbolic representation was strength and labour: it was commonly seen as a symbol of hard work, patience, and endurance, particularly in agricultural contexts where oxen were used as draft animals.
Its role as a working animal and its association with agricultural labour made it a symbol of sacrifice in the context of offering one's labour to God.
In Christian iconography, the ox is often associated with Luke, one of the four evangelists. This association is based on the descriptions of the four living creatures in the Book of Revelation, which are often interpreted as symbolic representations of the four evangelists.
The ox's role as a domesticated animal that served humans symbolised the virtues of service and submission to God's will.
According to Isidore of Seville, in his Etymologies 12, 4, 22, the ox was capable of curing the bites of water snakes with its own dung.
References to the ox in the Bible can be found in Isaiah NKJV 1:3: “The ox knows its owner And the donkey its master’s crib; But Israel does not know, My people do not consider”: this passage metaphorically compares the relationship between Israel and God to that of an ox and its owner, highlighting Israel's rebellion and lack of understanding.
In Deuteronomy NKJV 25:4: “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain”, the verse instructs that one should not muzzle an ox while it is treading out grain, which was interpreted as a principle of fairness and compassion towards animals.
cant. eoquod terram terat. quasi terionem. Bo-
um in sociis eximia pietas. Nam alter alterum inqui-
rit; cum quo ducere collo aratra consuevit. et frequen-
ti mugitu pium testatur affectum; si forte defuerit.
Boves inpendente(changed to inpendriente) pluvia; ad presepia se tenere no-
verunt. Idem ubi naturali sensu collegerint muta-
tionem celi foras spectant. et ultra presepia cervices
suas extendunt. una omnes specie; ut prodire se velle
testentur. Viri; agrestes boves sunt in germania. habentes cor-
nua imensa. in tantum; ut regiis mensis insigni ca-
pacitate ex eis gerula potuum fiant. Sunt etiam in
india boves unicornes. solidis ungulis. nec bicissis. sed
atrocissimis. bubali vocationem inde trahunt. quod
sint similes boum adeo indomiti; ut pro feritate iu-
gum non recipiant. Vacca dicta; quasi boacca. Est enim
ex qualitate mobilium nominum. sicut leo leena. dra-
co. dracena. vitulus et(corrected from a) vitula. a viriditate vocati sunt.
idest etate viridi sicut virgo. Vitulam enim parvu-
lam esse. et nondum enixam; dicunt. Nam enixa; iu-
venca est id est vacca.
The Greeks called the ox βοῦς/voús. The Latins called oxen trĭōnes, for they plough the land, from the Greek word θηρίον/thiríon, beast. These animals show unswerving loyalty towards their companions. Since they usually pull the plough with their neck, they look for and care for one another; with frequent bellows, they show sincere affection. Owing to the impending rain, they have learned to seek shelter in mangers. Similarly, when they have perceived a change in the weather by their natural intuition, they look outside and stretch their necks beyond the mangers. They show all together their desire to go out with one glance. In Germania1, wild oxen are male having huge horns to such an extent that they are used as carriers of drinks for royal banquets owing to their remarkable capacity. Also in India, there are oxen with one horn, with solid hooves, not cloven, but very fierce. Buffaloes take their name therefrom, as they are similar to oxen in being so untamed that they do not accept the yoke due to their ferocity. Vacca is the cow, sounding like bōaca, bogue,2 for it is similar to variable names such as lĕo for lion, lĕaena for lioness, drăco for dragon, dracaena for she-dragon, vĭtŭlus for calf, and vĭtŭla for heifer, named from their youthful vigour, i.e., from their blooming, young age that is a characteristic of virgins. A heifer is very young and has not calved yet; when it has calved, it becomes a young cow, that is, a iŭvenca.
Bibliography
David Badke, The Bestiary Blog: Animals in the Middle Ages, Ox, November 6 2023, https://bestiary.ca/beasts/beast199.htm
Josh Goldenberg (BA 2012) and Matt Shanahan (BA 2014), Logeion, November 2022, https://logeion.uchicago.edu/
Castiglioni, L. and Mariotti, S. (1996). Vocabolario della Lingua Latina: Latino-Italiano Italiano-Latino. Terza Edizione. Loescher Torino
Matthews, J. and Matthews C., (2010), The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures, HarperCollins UK, London
Curley, M. J., Physiologus: A Medieval Book of Nature Lore (University of Chicago edition 2009)
Rackham, H., M.A., Pliny Natural History Volume III, Libri VIII-XI (London: William Heinemann Ltd, 1949)
Collins, A. H., M.A., Symbolism of Animals and Birds (New York: McBride, Nast & Company, 1913)
Henderson, C., The Book of Barely Imagined Beings (London: University of Chicago Press, 2013)
White, T. H., The Bestiary: A Book of Beasts (New York: G.P Putnam’s Sons, 1960)
Barney, S. A., Lewis, W. J., Beach A., Berghof O., The Etymologies of Isidore of Seville (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006)
Footnotes
1 The land of the ancient Germanic people.
2 Bōca or boaca is bogue in English, also known as boops boops from Ancient Greek βόωψ, literally 'ox-eyed'. It is a type of seabream native to the Eastern Atlantic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boops_boops