The hunt in the Middle Ages

Abstract

The Author examines the hunting practices of the Middle Ages, concentrating on the relation between man and nature, and on the idea people at the time had of forest, and the use of forests by man. He moves from a consideration of how the ability used to hunt, to a view of the hunting methods of the poor, who often lived on the margins of society. The noble art of falconry is studied in the light of the symbolic value it possessed for those who practised it, and includes the practical use the nobleman made of it and the refined techniques of training the falcon and capturing the prey By an investigation of the subject of nature, viewed as the creation of God hut also as the haunt of infernal beings, he tries to acquire an idea of how medieval man experienced his constant close contact with an environment that was both rich in resources and full of dangers, in a way that is really impossible to understand today He takes us in a journey to look for ancient hunting tecniques, on a voyage of discovery to find another world of nature, far removed from our own in centuries, but very close in the excitement it can still communicate to us.