Medieval hunting / Richard Almond.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Almond, Richard.

Contributor:

Class of 1924 Book Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Hunting--Europe--History--To 1500.

Hunting.

Hunting--Social aspects--Europe.

Hunting--Social aspects.

History.

Europe.

Physical Description:

vii, 216 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Stroud, Gloucestershire : Sutton, 2003.

Summary:

Hunting was a major economic and leisure activity throughout the European later Middle Ages, and while it has been featured in studies of romantic and narrative literature, hunting has largely been ignored by modern medieval historians. Richard Almond's book brings vividly to life the universality and centrality of hunting to medieval societies, both as an economic necessity and as an expression of medieval humanity's almost atavistic sense of oneness with nature. It also offers a historical perspective on the current debates concerning hunting, which frequently appear in the media today.

Medieval Hunting dispels some of the myths and misunderstandings about hunting, including the view that it was chiefly an aristocratic pursuit, and a male one at that. Richard Almond shows that hunting (in which he includes fishing, hawking and poaching) was enjoyed by all classes, and by women as well as men. Using a variety of sources, including hunting manuals and treatises, Books of Hours, Psalters and tapestries, as well as pictures of hart and boar hunting, ladies ferreting conies, peasants netting larks and unusual camouflage techniques such as disguising oneself as a woodcock, the author offers a detailed and captivating picture of a pre-urban world from which the modern age has much to learn in terms of land use and conservation.

Lively, informative and richly illustrated, this unique study is essential for medieval and social historians, and also has much to offer those interested in the countryside and modern fieldsports.

Contents:

1 'Delite' and Other Functions 13

2 'Lordes to Honte' 28

3 'Bestis' and 'Crafte' 61

4 Everyman 90

5 Crossing the Barriers 115

6 Medieval Dianas 143.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 201-205) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Class of 1924 Book Fund.

ISBN:

0750921625 :

OCLC:

52620813