Morten St George Theory

[Morten St. George]

The sunflower has various alternate IDs, and I think especially millet (after an image JKP posted a while ago) is a better candidate. Based not only on the appearance of the plant on c.1400 MSS but also the actual plant's morphology. See here You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. . Other IDs which make as much or more sense than sunflower are some thistle types, dandelion and other Asteraceae.

For the "armadillo" there is a better candidate in the Old World, the pangolin. An armadillo is defined by its bands (in Dutch it is even called gordeldier, "band-animal") while the VM critter has scales, like the pangolin.

More importantly though, there are animals in medieval nature books which are basically fish versions of mammals. They look more like the thing than an armadillo ever could, showing how ridiculously flimsy Tucker's foundation is and the lack of proper iconographic research that underlies his entire thesis. 

There are a few reasons why these "aquatic mammal monsters" are much more like the VM critter: the mammalian paws, large scales, presence of water and the split fish tail.

There are two 'sunflower' drawings in the VMS. The one on You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. comes closest to the real thing, even down to the roots.

Also, if any of the five animals you depict were alive and well in Europe during the early 15th century, please let me know which one and the full name of its species so that I can check it out. Thanks.