this post was submitted on 29 Jul 2023
467 points (99.2% liked)

cats

19333 readers
1710 users here now

typical internet cats. videos, pics, memes welcome!

rule 1) be kind

lemmy.world rules:

other cat communities midwest.social cats

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 

"This 14th century door at Exeter Cathedral, UK, is thought to be the oldest existing cat flap

A cat was paid a penny each week, to keep down the rats and mice in the north tower, and a cat flap was cut into the door below the astronomical clock to allow the cat to carry out its duties.

Records of payments were entered in the Cathedral archives from 1305 to 1467, the penny a week being enough to buy food to supplement a heavy diet of rodents."

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago

Here's a post with more details - yes, seems like the post I quoted is just people making a joke out of the original Latin phrasing of the payroll, which for some years was written "to the custodians and the cat" rather than the presumably intended "to the custodians for the cat".