Today’s page is dedicated to those fans who have wondered when I’m going to put up more bizarre historical art.
About 300 years ago, some genius Japanese artist gave us He-Gassen, or “the fart war.” I can’t make this up if I tried. Not quite safe for work.
![The Fart War - using hand fans](https://i1.wp.com/blog.cnbeyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/fart-fan.jpg?resize=250%2C146)
![The Fart War - Shooting through a table](https://i0.wp.com/blog.cnbeyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/fart2.jpg?resize=250%2C172)
![The Fart War ; Fartng at a cat](https://i1.wp.com/blog.cnbeyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/fart-cat.jpg?resize=250%2C171)
And then there’s more medieval silliness on the matter:
![Bonnacon - Medieval monster that farts](https://i0.wp.com/blog.cnbeyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/fart-animal.jpg?resize=250%2C120)
Says one source, who I’m sure is totally reputable and wasn’t drinking at all when he wrote it:
…in Asia an animal is found which men call Bonnacon. It has the head of a bull, and thereafter its whole body is of the size of a bull’s with the maned neck of a horse. Its horns are convoluted, curling back on themselves in such a way that if anyone comes up against it, he is not harmed. But the protection which its forehead denies this monster is furnished by its bowels. For when it turns to flee, it discharges fumes from the excrement of its belly over a distance of three acres, the heat of which sets fire to anything it touches. In this way, it drives off its pursuers with its harmful excrement.
And then there’s this cheeky 15th century monkey:
![I hope the monkey is just farting, but probably not](https://i1.wp.com/blog.cnbeyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/monkey-fart.jpg?resize=153%2C300)
Bodily functions humor also makes a great political statement:
![Protestants fart in the pope's general direction.](https://i2.wp.com/blog.cnbeyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/protestant-fart.jpg?resize=232%2C300)
And for those of you who haven’t followed me from the beginning, here’s a couple oldie but goodies from my introduction to marginalia, which is a bizarre art form in and of itself:
![Marginalia - Butt Trumpet](https://i2.wp.com/blog.cnbeyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/original.jpg?resize=250%2C146)
![Marginalia - King with Bagpipe in Butt](https://i0.wp.com/blog.cnbeyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/wallpaper_medieval4.jpg?resize=200%2C300)
The last one looks rather like a set of Uillean pipes or bagpipes – I didn’t think they sounded *that* bad