Hunting with birds of prey in the Roman period

[Marcus Mummius]

Salvete,

Is there any proof that hunting with birds of prey took place in the Roman period?

Valete,
Falco

[Carlton Bach]

I've never come across any references. dtv Lexikon des Mittelalters says that while the practice dates back pretty far in Central Asia (probably 2nd or even 3rd millennium BC), it doesn't make it into Europe until the Migration period when Germanic peoples adopt it from the Sarmatians and Alans.

[Epictetus]

We have this interesting bit:

In what places hawks and men pursue the chase in company with each other.

In the part of Thrace which lies above Amphipolis, men and hawks go in pursuit of prey, in a sort of partnership as it were; for while the men drive the birds from out of the woods and the reed-beds, the hawks bring them down as they fly; and after they have taken the game, the fowlers share it with them. It has been said, that when sent aloft, they will pick out the birds that are wanted, and that when the opportune moment for taking them has come, they invite the fowler to seize the opportunity by their cries and their peculiar mode of flying.

Pliny the Elder. Natural History, 10.10

However, I think that some people claim that the men of Thrace simply learned to follow hawks, not actually keep them for the purpose of hunting. It is a bit difficult to guess from this passage.

[Wander]

Either way, I'd read that as saying it would be quite a novelty to a Roman, else Pliny would not have described it that way.

I have to admit I have a little trouble imagining an untrained hawk sharing its prey with humans, so I would lean toward seeing them as trained. This might not be to the "bird-on-your-wrist" level, though.

[Epictetus]

It seems certain that Pliny is just reporting what he has heard, so he (or his source) may have muddled what the Thracians were actually doing.

I think it is possible that the hawks and men learned to work together for mutual benefit, even if the hawks weren't trained. Just as an example, when I was growing up I had to cut a lot of grass. One type of bird learned to follow the lawnmower to eat the bugs that were displaced. I was happy to have less bugs flying around, and the birds were happy to have something to eat. I suppose hawks could learn that people would scare up game for them too.

[Tiglath Pileser III]

According to Encyclopaedia Britannica:

Falconry is an ancient sport that has been practiced since preliterate times. Stelae depicting falconry that were created by the Hittites date to the 13th century BC, and cave paintings from prehistoric sites may represent even earlier references to falconry. Merchants, adventurers, and Crusaders from Europe and England became familiar with falconry in the Middle East and on their return home took falcons and falconers with them.

Source: http://original.britannica.com/eb/artic ... 72382.hook

Regards,
David Chibo
http://www.gilgameshgames.org

[Wander]

Tiglath Pileser: Please add your real name to your posts -- it's a forum rule. Thank you!

[Graham Sumner]

Hi Jef

Is there any proof that hunting with birds of prey took place in the Roman period?

Yes. Some mosaic scenes from Antioch and Argos show hunting with birds. The men wear gloves on ther left hand too!

Best wishes
Graham.

[A_Volpe]

Yes. Some mosaic scenes from Antioch and Argos show hunting with birds. The men wear gloves on ther left hand too!

Whoa! I had no idea about this, very cool!

Graham - Antioch, so are we talking 200's AD?

[Octavianvs]

Graham - Was it strictly in the east or is it possable that it was at some point throughout the empire? do we have a time frame on the mosaics?Do we have enough information? it would seem that at least at Pliny time it would not have been in the western europe. Also is there any way to understand in what context ( sport or actual hunt for food ) does the mosaic scenes from Antioch and Argos show the hunt? are the images available anywhere? Thanks this is really interesting !

[Graham Sumner]

Hi
Yes both mosaics have been published. Apologies I had a senior moment the Antioch mosaic is in fact in Jordan not Syria. I was thinking of another hunting mosaic. The Jordan one will possibly be the one easier to find and does appear in more than one book.

The books are:
Argos Mosaic in
Iacovidis, S.E. 1988: Micene, Epidauruo,Argo, Tiranto, Nauplia. Athens
Most people notice the soldier in red tunic in the seasons mosaic but the hunters including the man with the bird have some interesting costume.

Jordan Mosaic in
Piccirillo, M. 1993: I Mosaici di Giordania, Amman
This book is available in English. Lots of sources for late Roman clothing too.

Both mosaics are late Roman c. sixth century, the Jordan one is part of a larger hunting scene. I found the Jordan mosaic first because a friend who is a falconer asked me if there was any evidence for falconry in the Roman period. So when I was doing my research into tunic and cloak colours I made a note to look our for any pictorial sources for hunting with birds .The funny thing was when I finally saw the mosaic the falconer in the scene was the perfect likeness of my friend!! I seem to recall that when I showed him he said it was some type of Falcon that was depicted.

In all the books I have looked through these are the only two images of hunting birds that I have seen so far.

Hope this helps. Graham.

[Octavianvs]

Graham - Great Thanks it is much appreciated!

[Marcus Mummius]

Thanks, Graham, excellent information