Knowledge, observations and experiments on exotic captive animal (9th-15th century).
Download PD... more Knowledge, observations and experiments on exotic captive animal (9th-15th century).
Download PDF at : https://hal.science/hal-04292062 An article by Michel Pastoureau (2008) laid the foundations for a reflection on the relationship between medieval princely menageries and zoological knowledge, between observation of rare species, verification of ancient legends, scholarly discourse and possible experimentation, relying mainly on the cases of the elephant and the bear. The present article explores the few hypotheses put forward in this study, relying, in addition to the elephant, on the cases of the lion (frequently included in medieval menageries) and the ostrich. For these three species, certain legends, transmitted or not by the Bestiaries, could be invalidated by observation, or even by experiment: the elephants would not have knees; the cubs would be born “dead” and would be “resurrected” after three days; the ostrich would be able to eat metal. Those who observe exotic animals in captivity are divided between two opposing poles: wanting to justify ancient beliefs on the one hand, and contradicting and explaining the errors of the authorities on the other. These observations and possible refutations of ancient legends had only a limited influence on medieval knowledge on exotic animals, particularly in encyclopaedias, but they testify, mainly for the end of the Middle Ages, to a new critical approach in which what was seen had to be assessed from what was known from the texts (and vice versa).
Speculum Arabicum. Intersecting Perspectives on Medieval Encyclopaedism. Proceedings of the International Conference at Louvain-la-Neuve and Cambron-Casteau, 22-24 May 2017, 2022
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139436
Au Moyen Âge, la connaissance de la faune étrangère... more https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139436 Au Moyen Âge, la connaissance de la faune étrangère exotique (africaine et indienne) doit beaucoup à la transmission des auteurs antiques (Aristote, Pline, Solin) et des premiers auteurs chrétiens (Physiologus, Isidore de Séville, Pères de l’église). Pourtant on observe, notamment au XIIIe siècle, l’apparition de nouveaux savoirs dans les encyclopédies et autres textes d’histoire naturelle apparentés. Ces nouveaux savoirs doivent peu aux autorités anciennes et sont le fruit d’apports nouveaux, liés à l’observation directe (animaux de ménageries) ou à des savoirs vernaculaires (voyageurs, marchands, chasseurs, pêcheurs, marins, etc.). C’est particulièrement le cas pour les animaux mal connus du Nord de l’Europe, mettant en lumière un exotisme venu du froid, dans le cadre d’échanges accrus avec le monde scandinave. L’exposé tentera de mettre en valeur ces apports, notamment dans l’introduction de nouvelles espèces ou de nouveaux zoonymes dans l’inventaire du monde vivant, mais aussi dans les compléments d’informations apportés sur les savoirs anciens. Notre enquête portera principalement sur Thomas de Cantimpré et Albert le Grand, avec des compléments tirés de Barthélemy l’Anglais, Vincent de Beauvais et Alexandre Neckam. Nous essayerons de mettre en avant l’apport fondamental de Thomas de Cantimpré dans cet enrichissement du monde animal exotique médiéval, en le comparant avec l’approche de ses contemporains.
Culture matérielle et contacts diplomatiques entre l’Occident latin, Byzance et l’Orient islamique (XIe-XVIe s.), 2021
https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139420
Les animaux exotiques les plus rare... more https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139420 Les animaux exotiques les plus rares et les plus chers, comme l’éléphant ou la girafe, avaient une place de choix parmi les cadeaux diplomatiques entre Occident latin, monde byzantin et Orient islamique. Mais le don d’un éléphant ou d’une girafe nécessitait une logistique importante, comprenant la capture dans le milieu naturel – fort éloigné des capitales arabes – le transport, les soins vétérinaires, l’alimentation et le logement au départ et à l’arrivée chez le destinataire du cadeau. Les témoignages sur ces réalités matérielles des ménageries médiévales sont très rares et les informations transmises peu précises. Nous essaierons néanmoins, à partir de quelques exemples, d’évaluer les difficultés de cette logistique du cadeau diplomatique, pouvant conduire à la mort des animaux transportés et donc à la « destruction », totale ou partielle, du cadeau diplomatique. Nous évoquerons une autre contrainte importante : la durée nécessaire allant de la capture initiale au don final, pouvant prendre plusieurs mois, voire plusieurs années. Les souverains désireux d’offrir les animaux les plus rares devaient donc être en contact avec des marchands spécialisés capables de fournir et de vendre les espèces les plus éloignées. Nous évoquerons donc, quand la documentation le permet, le coût financier de telles entreprises, notamment le prix d’acquisition de certains animaux. Nous apporterons un contrepoint à l’exotisme zoologique indien ou africain en donnant quelques exemples d’importation d’animaux du Grand Nord, notamment des ours blancs et des gerfauts, ces derniers étant extrêmement prisés des fauconniers arabes. Offrir des animaux aussi rares et chers, venant des régions éloignées du Nord et du Sud, parfois selon la demande même du récipiendaire, nécessitait des réseaux marchands complexes, pour parvenir, en fin de compte à une mise en scène du don.
Falconry in the Mediterranean Context During the Pre-Modern Era, 2021
https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139381 Abstract : This paper will consider... more https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139381 Abstract : This paper will consider the medieval trade of the Gyrfalcon as an exotic animal. The exoticism the gyrfalcon is considered from two geographical points of view, Western Europe and Islamic lands. The bird was imported in Muslim countries form Northern Europe (through diplomatic gifts or from Italian and Spanish merchants) of from Russia through Central Asia; Gyrfalcons were also popular in Europe, praised as one of the noblest birds of prey. This study emphasizes three main topics. First, the naming of a foreign animal, as the name “Sunkur” was borrowed in Arabic from Turk languages of Central Asia. The medieval Latin Gyrofalco has a German and Old Norse etymology. Second, the paper investigates the geographic origin of this bird (Scandinavia and Russia) according to medieval Latin, Arabic and Persian historians and geographers. Third, the trade of this rare and expensive raptor is studied upon Latin and Arabic sources; during Mamluk dynasty, possessing gyrfalcons have been rather common in Egypt, an elite’s fashion.
La faune arctique et subarctique, très rarement évoquée dans les textes de l’Antiquité, est peu à... more La faune arctique et subarctique, très rarement évoquée dans les textes de l’Antiquité, est peu à peu découverte par les hommes du Moyen Âge, notamment à travers les contacts avec les peuples du Nord et les échanges et activités maritimes et commerciaux. Parfois, ces informations nouvelles permettent aux auteurs latins d’enrichir ou de préciser les données fragmentaires transmises par Aristote, Pline ou Solin. Cette étude s’intéresse à ce type d’information relative à la faune septentrionale dans le Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) de Thomas de Cantimpré, à travers les mentions géographiques données par l’auteur, et l’identification zoologique des espèces. Les références de Thomas sur la faune du Nord sont comparées avec celles présentes dans les traités animaliers d’Alexandre Neckam, Vincent de Beauvais, Barthélemy l’Anglais, Albert le Grand, pour évaluer les ressemblances et discordances dans l’approche de la faune nordique.
The arctic fauna, very rarely mentioned in Classical texts, is progressively discovered by medieval scholars trough maritime and commercial contacts with Northern peoples. This new information sometimes allows Latin authors to enhance the sketchy data transmitted by Aristoteles, Pliny or Solinus. This paper focuses on this kind of zoological information found in Thomas of Cantimpré’s Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) through the geographical data given by the author, and through the zoological identification of the species. Thomas’ references on Northern fauna are compared to those found in books on animals written by Alexander Neckam, Vincent of Beauvais, Bartholomeus Anglicus and Albertus Magnus, to evaluate which information they share or not in their approach of Northern fauna.
Post-Print OA available at : https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139428
Cheeta... more Post-Print OA available at : https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139428 Cheetah hunting was a quite common practice in European courts since the 13th century, especially in Italy and France. The use of the cheetah as a hunting auxiliary was imported from Arabic courts, and Frederic II Hohenstaufen was probably the first ruler to hunt with these cats imported form the Maghreb and the Near East. One could find earlier mentions of cheetah in courts —England— but without any proof of its use at hunt. The fashion of cheetah hunting will increase in Italy during the 14th Century, to be at its apogee in the 15th C. We lack European technical hunting treaties about cheetah hunting, but they are many other sources relating the cheetah hunting (narrative, chronicles, accounts, etc.). Cheetah was also deeply used as a diplomatic gift: princes, rulers and kings were frequently asking for this animal to renew their hunting menageries, as they did with falcons. Cheetah hunting was still a common practice (France and Italy mainly) in the 16th Century, but seems to decrease at the end of this century, and disappears during the first half of the 17th Century. For example, it is striking to observe that Buffon didn’t know at all the Cheetah, never saw a living specimen but only pelts. In the 18th Century, European naturalists and scientists in Europe have forgotten this animal, which seems to have been replaced in menageries by the panther. After giving a quick look on the history of the Cheetah hunting, the aim of this paper is to study the different hypothesis explaining the end of this fashion in Europe, where, on the contrary, it still goes on in Oriental courts until the 19th C., especially in Persia and India.
De Proprietatibus Quorundam Animalium : a Bestiary in the ms. 28 of Avranches Library
https://jo... more De Proprietatibus Quorundam Animalium : a Bestiary in the ms. 28 of Avranches Library
https://journals.openedition.org/rursuspicae/540 Manuscript 28 of Avranches is the result of the binding together of two distinct codices in the seventeenth century. It consists of various short religious texts: commentaries and biblical glosses, distinctiones, treatises on vices and virtues, sermons, etc. Among this extensive textual material for preaching use, in the second part of the manuscript (dating from the 13th century), we find a bestiary entitled De proprietatibus quorundam animalium (f. 179-180). This is the unique text on animals surviving from the library of the Mont Saint-Michel Abbey. A short collection of exempla (partly involving animals) is added to the bestiary, and is entitled Ecce similitudines multe de diversis (f. 180-180v). The bestiary and the collection of similitudines seem to form a set; they may have had the same use for the compiler. The bestiary consists of about 30 short chapters, ten of which are perfect copies of the B version of the Physiologus; other chapters can be sourced partly in B or Y, but are often summarized and contain original moralizations which differ from other versions of the Latin Physiologus. I am making the assumption that the author of the bestiary of Avranches may have worked from an incomplete witness to B where the elephant and dove were missing, and where ostrich (asida), panther and aspidochelon were found at the end of the text of the B version, such as in the codex of Bern, Bürgerbibliothek, Lat. 233. The bestiary of Avranches is interesting in two ways: it is an additional (though partial) witness to Physiologus B but is also a mixed work, original in its composition and in some of its chapters, testifying to the reception and use of ancient versions of the Physiologus among 13th century preachers.
Inter litteras & scientias. Recueil d’études en hommage à Catherine Jacquemard, 2019
https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02328536. Le chapitre du Cetus de l’édition ... more https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02328536. Le chapitre du Cetus de l’édition du De piscibus de l’Hortus Sanitatis (HS) contient une longue note érudite relative à l’ambre de baleine, ou ambre gris, rédigée par Catherine Jacquemard. Cette note de C. Jacquemard est l’une des plus longues et des plus détaillées de l’apparat critique de tout l’ouvrage, fruit d’une enquête ayant peut-être été motivée par la confusion entre l’ambre jaune et l’ambre gris, deux matières fort différentes ayant pourtant le même nom. L’objectif de cet article est de faire le point sur l’histoire de cette double dénomination et d’essayer de comprendre comment un mot désignant l’ambre de baleine a servi au Moyen Âge à nommer l’ambre jaune de la Baltique
Conrad Gessner. Die Renaissance der Wissenschaften (The Renaissance of Learning), 2019
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139257 – The chapter on giraffe given by Conrad Gessner in... more https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139257 – The chapter on giraffe given by Conrad Gessner in his Historia animalium is an important step in the long-term history of this animal, from antiquity to pre-modern times. The aim of this paper is not to give an in-depth review of Gessner’s chapter on the giraffe, but it will stress three topics: the specific problem of the presence of the giraffe in the Bible; some aspects of Gessner’s textual sources, with a special focus on medieval authors, and the illustrations of the giraffe in the printed editions of Gessner’s Historia animalium.
Open access : https://craham.hypotheses.org/2370. Chronique du catalogage des manuscrits du Mont ... more Open access : https://craham.hypotheses.org/2370. Chronique du catalogage des manuscrits du Mont Saint-Michel : présentation d'un folio du manuscrit 98 d'Avranches, qui contient une Hymne à saint Michel, poème alphabétique de 24 strophes, composé à l'abbaye du Mont. Le feuillet volant, qui appartient à un manuscrit des Moralia in Job de Grégoire le Grand, en a été séparé après 1840; Il a ensuite été conservé sous forme de charte pliée en 4 dans un meuble à tiroirs, avant d'être restitué au manuscrit d'origine en 1925 par le bibliothécaire d'Avranches, Joseph Martin.
OA (post-print) available at : https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-02106597
La Chevaleri... more OA (post-print) available at : https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-02106597 La Chevalerie de Judas Macchabée et de ses nobles frères, roman en vers daté de 1285, utilise à plusieurs reprises les animaux comme motifs narratifs symboliques. Certains animaux (dont l’anabulla un des noms de la girafe au XIIIe siècle) sont empruntés au Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) de Thomas de Cantimpré. L’analyse du texte de la Chevalerie et l’illustration de son unique témoin manuscrit (Paris, BnF Fr. 15104) montre que l’auteur s’est non pas inspiré du texte de Thomas de Cantimpré, mais de l’illustration du manuscrit 320 de Valenciennes (témoin du LDNR), dont le programme iconographique (dont ont été conservées les instructions pour l’enlumineur en notes marginales) présente des écarts par rapport au contenu textuel – erreurs qui seront transmises dans des témoins enluminés postérieurs du LDNR. Ainsi, l’anabulla et l’aloy y sont représentés comme des éléphants, alors qu’il s’agit respectivement d’une girafe et d’un élan. L’auteur de la Chevalerie décrit dans son roman ces deux animaux comme des éléphants, montrant par-là que sa source n’est pas le texte latin du LDNR, mais des illustrations “fautives” d’un témoin manuscrit particulier.
Online : https://craham.hypotheses.org/2012
Le manuscrit 97 d’Avranches, originaire du Mont Saint... more Online : https://craham.hypotheses.org/2012 Le manuscrit 97 d’Avranches, originaire du Mont Saint-Michel, datable du début du XIe siècle, contient les livres 1 à 16 des Moralia in Job de Grégoire le Grand. La reliure du manuscrit a été restaurée au XVIIe siècle par les moines mauristes. Lors du catalogage du manuscrit en janvier 2019, dans le cadre de la Bibliothèque virtuelle du Mont Saint-Michel (BVMSM), j’ai constaté que des fragments de parchemin médiéval ont été utilisés pour renforcer la reliure au niveau du contreplat inférieur. Celui-ci porte une écriture dite « caroline » datable du XIe siècle, ou du début du XIIe. Ces fragments contiennent des passages du commentaire sur la grammaire latine de Donat par Rémi d’Auxerre, ainsi que des extraits d’un traité grammatical, l’Institutio de nomine et pronomine et verbo, de Priscien de Césarée. Ces fragments ont appartenu à un recueil du XIe siècle, appartenant à l’abbaye montoise, ouvrage ayant certainement servi à l’étude et à l’enseignement de la langue latine
http://anthropozoologica.com/53/2
Introduction. For a history of aquatic animals of the northern... more http://anthropozoologica.com/53/2 Introduction. For a history of aquatic animals of the northern seas.
From May, 31st to June 3rd, 2017, an international conference was held at the Cerisy-la-Salle International Cultural Center, entitled “Aquatic animals and Monsters of the Northern Seas (Imagination, knowledge, exploitation, from Antiquity to 1600)”, organized by the Centre Michel de Boüard – Craham (UMR 6273, Université de Caen Normandie – CNRS). The introduction to the proceedings of this conference presents first the scientific context, and the research programs Dyrin (history of the Nordic fauna in the Middle Ages) and Ichtya (history of knowledge on fish from Antiquity to the Renaissance) in which the organizers of the conference are involved. A quick summary presents the state of art about studies on the history of northern animals, where the bibliography is still scarce, far from covering all possible topics, notably that of the European perception of the Scandinavian fauna. Then we summarize the state of knowledge on the history of ancient, medieval and renaissance ichtyological knowledge, with a specific focus on the habitat of marine species, the naming of fishes and marine mammals and their use in human nutrition. Finally, we present the various papers published in the volume, grouped under the topics developed during the conference (identification, naming and classification; animal products, fishing, trade and food; literature, representations, imagination and allegories).
Histoire et anthropologie des odeurs en terre d’Islam à l’époque médiévale, 2015
The origin of ambergris, an intestinal pathologic secretion of the sperm‑whale, used in perfumes ... more The origin of ambergris, an intestinal pathologic secretion of the sperm‑whale, used in perfumes and medieval pharmacology, had been long debated among Arab scholars. The paper exposes the various hypotheses related to this origin, and its textual transmission during medieval times. These traditions show a good example of complex relations between good and bad odors, connected to the different colors of ambergris (black, grey, white) and to its animal (whale or fish-dung), mineral or vegetal origin. (if you're interested, I will send you the paper by email - leave a message on academia)
http://mad.hypotheses.org/715 This is the very first version of a bibliography on history of ani... more http://mad.hypotheses.org/715 This is the very first version of a bibliography on history of animals in the (Medieval and Ottoman Muslim world. Please send comments at medievalanimal@gmail.com and buquet.zarafa@gmail.com. If people are interested, we could organized a work-group on Zotero.org to share a bibliography with specialists from various origins and topics (hunting, falconry, veterinary medicine, horses, iconography, etc.) This bibliography presents only secondary literature, no sources at all for the moment.
http://mad.hypotheses.org/620 The paper presents a short history of menageries in the Arab and Ot... more http://mad.hypotheses.org/620 The paper presents a short history of menageries in the Arab and Ottoman area : how the exotic animals were acquired, how they wer kept, with specific mentions to the menageries of Cairo and Constantinople.
Cette courte étude se propose de présenter quelques éléments sur l'histoire des ménageries dans l... more Cette courte étude se propose de présenter quelques éléments sur l'histoire des ménageries dans le monde arabe, jusqu'à la période ottomane. Nous évoquons quelques sources décrivant ces ménageries au Caire, à Bagdad et dans d'autres capitales, notamment à l'époque mamelouk. (On line : http://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01070008)
Deux légendes relatives à l’hybridité et la naissance des girafes sont fréquemment mentionnées da... more Deux légendes relatives à l’hybridité et la naissance des girafes sont fréquemment mentionnées dans les sources arabes. La première explique que la girafe est le fruit d’une hybridation, parfois en deux générations, entre le chameau, le bœuf et l’hyène. Cette légende a été très probablement influencée par la zoologie grecque antique, notamment par Timothée de Gaza. Cette hybridité supposée a longtemps divisé les juristes quant au statut alimentaire de la viande de cet animal selon l’islam. Hybride de l’hyène, la girafe est impure ; animal ruminant ressemblant au bétail, sa viande est alors pure. Une autre légende, relative aux circonstances de la naissance dangereuse des girafons que leurs mères cherchent à tuer dès la fin de la parturition, n’est cependant pas venue contredire la légende de l’hybridité. L’observation de naissances de girafes en captivité dans les ménageries du Caire n’est pas parvenue non plus à affaiblir l’hypothèse de l’hybridité, qui a eu une longue postérité dans les livres des merveilles, encyclopédies et traités géographiques jusqu’à l’époque ottomane.
Two legends concerning the hybrid nature and the birth of giraffes are frequently cited in Arabic sources. The first legend explains that the giraffe is a hybrid of the camel, the ox and the hyena, sometimes appearing after two generations. This legend was probably influenced by Ancient Greek zoology, especially that of Timotheus of Gaza. Because of the supposedly hybrid nature of the camel, its alimentary status under Islamic dietary laws was a subject of long debate amongst religious scholars. As the hybrid off-spring of a hyena, the giraffe would be unclean; as the off-spring of a ruminant such as cattle, its flesh would be pure and fit to be eaten. Another legend, related to the dangerous birth of baby giraffes, indicates that they may be attacked and killed by their mothers just after giving birth. The legend was not seen as a contradiction to the story of their hybrid nature. Observation of the birth of giraffes in captivity in Cairo menageries did not undermine the theory that giraffes were hybrids which had a long afterlife in ‘books of marvels’, encyclopaedias and geographic treaties up until the Ottoman period.
Fabuleuses histoires des bêtes et des hommes, Jacques Toussaint (Ed.) (Namur, Trema, 2013), Nov 13, 2013
L'histoire des ménageries médiévales a été jusqu'à aujourd'hui relativement peu étudiée ; trop p... more L'histoire des ménageries médiévales a été jusqu'à aujourd'hui relativement peu étudiée ; trop peu d'études ont notamment été consacrées à la présence des animaux exotiques dans les ménageries. L'article présenté ici ne prétend pas aborder tous les thèmes possibles sur ce sujet ; nous avons choisi d'étudier la composition des ménageries (quelles espèces exotiques sont les plus fréquemment gardées en captivité ?), la quête de nouveauté et d'exotisme, et l'usage des bêtes exotiques dans la mise en scène du pouvoir et du faste des princes médiévaux.
Knowledge, observations and experiments on exotic captive animal (9th-15th century).
Download PD... more Knowledge, observations and experiments on exotic captive animal (9th-15th century).
Download PDF at : https://hal.science/hal-04292062 An article by Michel Pastoureau (2008) laid the foundations for a reflection on the relationship between medieval princely menageries and zoological knowledge, between observation of rare species, verification of ancient legends, scholarly discourse and possible experimentation, relying mainly on the cases of the elephant and the bear. The present article explores the few hypotheses put forward in this study, relying, in addition to the elephant, on the cases of the lion (frequently included in medieval menageries) and the ostrich. For these three species, certain legends, transmitted or not by the Bestiaries, could be invalidated by observation, or even by experiment: the elephants would not have knees; the cubs would be born “dead” and would be “resurrected” after three days; the ostrich would be able to eat metal. Those who observe exotic animals in captivity are divided between two opposing poles: wanting to justify ancient beliefs on the one hand, and contradicting and explaining the errors of the authorities on the other. These observations and possible refutations of ancient legends had only a limited influence on medieval knowledge on exotic animals, particularly in encyclopaedias, but they testify, mainly for the end of the Middle Ages, to a new critical approach in which what was seen had to be assessed from what was known from the texts (and vice versa).
Speculum Arabicum. Intersecting Perspectives on Medieval Encyclopaedism. Proceedings of the International Conference at Louvain-la-Neuve and Cambron-Casteau, 22-24 May 2017, 2022
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139436
Au Moyen Âge, la connaissance de la faune étrangère... more https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139436 Au Moyen Âge, la connaissance de la faune étrangère exotique (africaine et indienne) doit beaucoup à la transmission des auteurs antiques (Aristote, Pline, Solin) et des premiers auteurs chrétiens (Physiologus, Isidore de Séville, Pères de l’église). Pourtant on observe, notamment au XIIIe siècle, l’apparition de nouveaux savoirs dans les encyclopédies et autres textes d’histoire naturelle apparentés. Ces nouveaux savoirs doivent peu aux autorités anciennes et sont le fruit d’apports nouveaux, liés à l’observation directe (animaux de ménageries) ou à des savoirs vernaculaires (voyageurs, marchands, chasseurs, pêcheurs, marins, etc.). C’est particulièrement le cas pour les animaux mal connus du Nord de l’Europe, mettant en lumière un exotisme venu du froid, dans le cadre d’échanges accrus avec le monde scandinave. L’exposé tentera de mettre en valeur ces apports, notamment dans l’introduction de nouvelles espèces ou de nouveaux zoonymes dans l’inventaire du monde vivant, mais aussi dans les compléments d’informations apportés sur les savoirs anciens. Notre enquête portera principalement sur Thomas de Cantimpré et Albert le Grand, avec des compléments tirés de Barthélemy l’Anglais, Vincent de Beauvais et Alexandre Neckam. Nous essayerons de mettre en avant l’apport fondamental de Thomas de Cantimpré dans cet enrichissement du monde animal exotique médiéval, en le comparant avec l’approche de ses contemporains.
Culture matérielle et contacts diplomatiques entre l’Occident latin, Byzance et l’Orient islamique (XIe-XVIe s.), 2021
https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139420
Les animaux exotiques les plus rare... more https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139420 Les animaux exotiques les plus rares et les plus chers, comme l’éléphant ou la girafe, avaient une place de choix parmi les cadeaux diplomatiques entre Occident latin, monde byzantin et Orient islamique. Mais le don d’un éléphant ou d’une girafe nécessitait une logistique importante, comprenant la capture dans le milieu naturel – fort éloigné des capitales arabes – le transport, les soins vétérinaires, l’alimentation et le logement au départ et à l’arrivée chez le destinataire du cadeau. Les témoignages sur ces réalités matérielles des ménageries médiévales sont très rares et les informations transmises peu précises. Nous essaierons néanmoins, à partir de quelques exemples, d’évaluer les difficultés de cette logistique du cadeau diplomatique, pouvant conduire à la mort des animaux transportés et donc à la « destruction », totale ou partielle, du cadeau diplomatique. Nous évoquerons une autre contrainte importante : la durée nécessaire allant de la capture initiale au don final, pouvant prendre plusieurs mois, voire plusieurs années. Les souverains désireux d’offrir les animaux les plus rares devaient donc être en contact avec des marchands spécialisés capables de fournir et de vendre les espèces les plus éloignées. Nous évoquerons donc, quand la documentation le permet, le coût financier de telles entreprises, notamment le prix d’acquisition de certains animaux. Nous apporterons un contrepoint à l’exotisme zoologique indien ou africain en donnant quelques exemples d’importation d’animaux du Grand Nord, notamment des ours blancs et des gerfauts, ces derniers étant extrêmement prisés des fauconniers arabes. Offrir des animaux aussi rares et chers, venant des régions éloignées du Nord et du Sud, parfois selon la demande même du récipiendaire, nécessitait des réseaux marchands complexes, pour parvenir, en fin de compte à une mise en scène du don.
Falconry in the Mediterranean Context During the Pre-Modern Era, 2021
https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139381 Abstract : This paper will consider... more https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139381 Abstract : This paper will consider the medieval trade of the Gyrfalcon as an exotic animal. The exoticism the gyrfalcon is considered from two geographical points of view, Western Europe and Islamic lands. The bird was imported in Muslim countries form Northern Europe (through diplomatic gifts or from Italian and Spanish merchants) of from Russia through Central Asia; Gyrfalcons were also popular in Europe, praised as one of the noblest birds of prey. This study emphasizes three main topics. First, the naming of a foreign animal, as the name “Sunkur” was borrowed in Arabic from Turk languages of Central Asia. The medieval Latin Gyrofalco has a German and Old Norse etymology. Second, the paper investigates the geographic origin of this bird (Scandinavia and Russia) according to medieval Latin, Arabic and Persian historians and geographers. Third, the trade of this rare and expensive raptor is studied upon Latin and Arabic sources; during Mamluk dynasty, possessing gyrfalcons have been rather common in Egypt, an elite’s fashion.
La faune arctique et subarctique, très rarement évoquée dans les textes de l’Antiquité, est peu à... more La faune arctique et subarctique, très rarement évoquée dans les textes de l’Antiquité, est peu à peu découverte par les hommes du Moyen Âge, notamment à travers les contacts avec les peuples du Nord et les échanges et activités maritimes et commerciaux. Parfois, ces informations nouvelles permettent aux auteurs latins d’enrichir ou de préciser les données fragmentaires transmises par Aristote, Pline ou Solin. Cette étude s’intéresse à ce type d’information relative à la faune septentrionale dans le Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) de Thomas de Cantimpré, à travers les mentions géographiques données par l’auteur, et l’identification zoologique des espèces. Les références de Thomas sur la faune du Nord sont comparées avec celles présentes dans les traités animaliers d’Alexandre Neckam, Vincent de Beauvais, Barthélemy l’Anglais, Albert le Grand, pour évaluer les ressemblances et discordances dans l’approche de la faune nordique.
The arctic fauna, very rarely mentioned in Classical texts, is progressively discovered by medieval scholars trough maritime and commercial contacts with Northern peoples. This new information sometimes allows Latin authors to enhance the sketchy data transmitted by Aristoteles, Pliny or Solinus. This paper focuses on this kind of zoological information found in Thomas of Cantimpré’s Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) through the geographical data given by the author, and through the zoological identification of the species. Thomas’ references on Northern fauna are compared to those found in books on animals written by Alexander Neckam, Vincent of Beauvais, Bartholomeus Anglicus and Albertus Magnus, to evaluate which information they share or not in their approach of Northern fauna.
Post-Print OA available at : https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139428
Cheeta... more Post-Print OA available at : https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139428 Cheetah hunting was a quite common practice in European courts since the 13th century, especially in Italy and France. The use of the cheetah as a hunting auxiliary was imported from Arabic courts, and Frederic II Hohenstaufen was probably the first ruler to hunt with these cats imported form the Maghreb and the Near East. One could find earlier mentions of cheetah in courts —England— but without any proof of its use at hunt. The fashion of cheetah hunting will increase in Italy during the 14th Century, to be at its apogee in the 15th C. We lack European technical hunting treaties about cheetah hunting, but they are many other sources relating the cheetah hunting (narrative, chronicles, accounts, etc.). Cheetah was also deeply used as a diplomatic gift: princes, rulers and kings were frequently asking for this animal to renew their hunting menageries, as they did with falcons. Cheetah hunting was still a common practice (France and Italy mainly) in the 16th Century, but seems to decrease at the end of this century, and disappears during the first half of the 17th Century. For example, it is striking to observe that Buffon didn’t know at all the Cheetah, never saw a living specimen but only pelts. In the 18th Century, European naturalists and scientists in Europe have forgotten this animal, which seems to have been replaced in menageries by the panther. After giving a quick look on the history of the Cheetah hunting, the aim of this paper is to study the different hypothesis explaining the end of this fashion in Europe, where, on the contrary, it still goes on in Oriental courts until the 19th C., especially in Persia and India.
De Proprietatibus Quorundam Animalium : a Bestiary in the ms. 28 of Avranches Library
https://jo... more De Proprietatibus Quorundam Animalium : a Bestiary in the ms. 28 of Avranches Library
https://journals.openedition.org/rursuspicae/540 Manuscript 28 of Avranches is the result of the binding together of two distinct codices in the seventeenth century. It consists of various short religious texts: commentaries and biblical glosses, distinctiones, treatises on vices and virtues, sermons, etc. Among this extensive textual material for preaching use, in the second part of the manuscript (dating from the 13th century), we find a bestiary entitled De proprietatibus quorundam animalium (f. 179-180). This is the unique text on animals surviving from the library of the Mont Saint-Michel Abbey. A short collection of exempla (partly involving animals) is added to the bestiary, and is entitled Ecce similitudines multe de diversis (f. 180-180v). The bestiary and the collection of similitudines seem to form a set; they may have had the same use for the compiler. The bestiary consists of about 30 short chapters, ten of which are perfect copies of the B version of the Physiologus; other chapters can be sourced partly in B or Y, but are often summarized and contain original moralizations which differ from other versions of the Latin Physiologus. I am making the assumption that the author of the bestiary of Avranches may have worked from an incomplete witness to B where the elephant and dove were missing, and where ostrich (asida), panther and aspidochelon were found at the end of the text of the B version, such as in the codex of Bern, Bürgerbibliothek, Lat. 233. The bestiary of Avranches is interesting in two ways: it is an additional (though partial) witness to Physiologus B but is also a mixed work, original in its composition and in some of its chapters, testifying to the reception and use of ancient versions of the Physiologus among 13th century preachers.
Inter litteras & scientias. Recueil d’études en hommage à Catherine Jacquemard, 2019
https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02328536. Le chapitre du Cetus de l’édition ... more https://hal-normandie-univ.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02328536. Le chapitre du Cetus de l’édition du De piscibus de l’Hortus Sanitatis (HS) contient une longue note érudite relative à l’ambre de baleine, ou ambre gris, rédigée par Catherine Jacquemard. Cette note de C. Jacquemard est l’une des plus longues et des plus détaillées de l’apparat critique de tout l’ouvrage, fruit d’une enquête ayant peut-être été motivée par la confusion entre l’ambre jaune et l’ambre gris, deux matières fort différentes ayant pourtant le même nom. L’objectif de cet article est de faire le point sur l’histoire de cette double dénomination et d’essayer de comprendre comment un mot désignant l’ambre de baleine a servi au Moyen Âge à nommer l’ambre jaune de la Baltique
Conrad Gessner. Die Renaissance der Wissenschaften (The Renaissance of Learning), 2019
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139257 – The chapter on giraffe given by Conrad Gessner in... more https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02139257 – The chapter on giraffe given by Conrad Gessner in his Historia animalium is an important step in the long-term history of this animal, from antiquity to pre-modern times. The aim of this paper is not to give an in-depth review of Gessner’s chapter on the giraffe, but it will stress three topics: the specific problem of the presence of the giraffe in the Bible; some aspects of Gessner’s textual sources, with a special focus on medieval authors, and the illustrations of the giraffe in the printed editions of Gessner’s Historia animalium.
Open access : https://craham.hypotheses.org/2370. Chronique du catalogage des manuscrits du Mont ... more Open access : https://craham.hypotheses.org/2370. Chronique du catalogage des manuscrits du Mont Saint-Michel : présentation d'un folio du manuscrit 98 d'Avranches, qui contient une Hymne à saint Michel, poème alphabétique de 24 strophes, composé à l'abbaye du Mont. Le feuillet volant, qui appartient à un manuscrit des Moralia in Job de Grégoire le Grand, en a été séparé après 1840; Il a ensuite été conservé sous forme de charte pliée en 4 dans un meuble à tiroirs, avant d'être restitué au manuscrit d'origine en 1925 par le bibliothécaire d'Avranches, Joseph Martin.
OA (post-print) available at : https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-02106597
La Chevaleri... more OA (post-print) available at : https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-02106597 La Chevalerie de Judas Macchabée et de ses nobles frères, roman en vers daté de 1285, utilise à plusieurs reprises les animaux comme motifs narratifs symboliques. Certains animaux (dont l’anabulla un des noms de la girafe au XIIIe siècle) sont empruntés au Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) de Thomas de Cantimpré. L’analyse du texte de la Chevalerie et l’illustration de son unique témoin manuscrit (Paris, BnF Fr. 15104) montre que l’auteur s’est non pas inspiré du texte de Thomas de Cantimpré, mais de l’illustration du manuscrit 320 de Valenciennes (témoin du LDNR), dont le programme iconographique (dont ont été conservées les instructions pour l’enlumineur en notes marginales) présente des écarts par rapport au contenu textuel – erreurs qui seront transmises dans des témoins enluminés postérieurs du LDNR. Ainsi, l’anabulla et l’aloy y sont représentés comme des éléphants, alors qu’il s’agit respectivement d’une girafe et d’un élan. L’auteur de la Chevalerie décrit dans son roman ces deux animaux comme des éléphants, montrant par-là que sa source n’est pas le texte latin du LDNR, mais des illustrations “fautives” d’un témoin manuscrit particulier.
Online : https://craham.hypotheses.org/2012
Le manuscrit 97 d’Avranches, originaire du Mont Saint... more Online : https://craham.hypotheses.org/2012 Le manuscrit 97 d’Avranches, originaire du Mont Saint-Michel, datable du début du XIe siècle, contient les livres 1 à 16 des Moralia in Job de Grégoire le Grand. La reliure du manuscrit a été restaurée au XVIIe siècle par les moines mauristes. Lors du catalogage du manuscrit en janvier 2019, dans le cadre de la Bibliothèque virtuelle du Mont Saint-Michel (BVMSM), j’ai constaté que des fragments de parchemin médiéval ont été utilisés pour renforcer la reliure au niveau du contreplat inférieur. Celui-ci porte une écriture dite « caroline » datable du XIe siècle, ou du début du XIIe. Ces fragments contiennent des passages du commentaire sur la grammaire latine de Donat par Rémi d’Auxerre, ainsi que des extraits d’un traité grammatical, l’Institutio de nomine et pronomine et verbo, de Priscien de Césarée. Ces fragments ont appartenu à un recueil du XIe siècle, appartenant à l’abbaye montoise, ouvrage ayant certainement servi à l’étude et à l’enseignement de la langue latine
http://anthropozoologica.com/53/2
Introduction. For a history of aquatic animals of the northern... more http://anthropozoologica.com/53/2 Introduction. For a history of aquatic animals of the northern seas.
From May, 31st to June 3rd, 2017, an international conference was held at the Cerisy-la-Salle International Cultural Center, entitled “Aquatic animals and Monsters of the Northern Seas (Imagination, knowledge, exploitation, from Antiquity to 1600)”, organized by the Centre Michel de Boüard – Craham (UMR 6273, Université de Caen Normandie – CNRS). The introduction to the proceedings of this conference presents first the scientific context, and the research programs Dyrin (history of the Nordic fauna in the Middle Ages) and Ichtya (history of knowledge on fish from Antiquity to the Renaissance) in which the organizers of the conference are involved. A quick summary presents the state of art about studies on the history of northern animals, where the bibliography is still scarce, far from covering all possible topics, notably that of the European perception of the Scandinavian fauna. Then we summarize the state of knowledge on the history of ancient, medieval and renaissance ichtyological knowledge, with a specific focus on the habitat of marine species, the naming of fishes and marine mammals and their use in human nutrition. Finally, we present the various papers published in the volume, grouped under the topics developed during the conference (identification, naming and classification; animal products, fishing, trade and food; literature, representations, imagination and allegories).
Histoire et anthropologie des odeurs en terre d’Islam à l’époque médiévale, 2015
The origin of ambergris, an intestinal pathologic secretion of the sperm‑whale, used in perfumes ... more The origin of ambergris, an intestinal pathologic secretion of the sperm‑whale, used in perfumes and medieval pharmacology, had been long debated among Arab scholars. The paper exposes the various hypotheses related to this origin, and its textual transmission during medieval times. These traditions show a good example of complex relations between good and bad odors, connected to the different colors of ambergris (black, grey, white) and to its animal (whale or fish-dung), mineral or vegetal origin. (if you're interested, I will send you the paper by email - leave a message on academia)
http://mad.hypotheses.org/715 This is the very first version of a bibliography on history of ani... more http://mad.hypotheses.org/715 This is the very first version of a bibliography on history of animals in the (Medieval and Ottoman Muslim world. Please send comments at medievalanimal@gmail.com and buquet.zarafa@gmail.com. If people are interested, we could organized a work-group on Zotero.org to share a bibliography with specialists from various origins and topics (hunting, falconry, veterinary medicine, horses, iconography, etc.) This bibliography presents only secondary literature, no sources at all for the moment.
http://mad.hypotheses.org/620 The paper presents a short history of menageries in the Arab and Ot... more http://mad.hypotheses.org/620 The paper presents a short history of menageries in the Arab and Ottoman area : how the exotic animals were acquired, how they wer kept, with specific mentions to the menageries of Cairo and Constantinople.
Cette courte étude se propose de présenter quelques éléments sur l'histoire des ménageries dans l... more Cette courte étude se propose de présenter quelques éléments sur l'histoire des ménageries dans le monde arabe, jusqu'à la période ottomane. Nous évoquons quelques sources décrivant ces ménageries au Caire, à Bagdad et dans d'autres capitales, notamment à l'époque mamelouk. (On line : http://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01070008)
Deux légendes relatives à l’hybridité et la naissance des girafes sont fréquemment mentionnées da... more Deux légendes relatives à l’hybridité et la naissance des girafes sont fréquemment mentionnées dans les sources arabes. La première explique que la girafe est le fruit d’une hybridation, parfois en deux générations, entre le chameau, le bœuf et l’hyène. Cette légende a été très probablement influencée par la zoologie grecque antique, notamment par Timothée de Gaza. Cette hybridité supposée a longtemps divisé les juristes quant au statut alimentaire de la viande de cet animal selon l’islam. Hybride de l’hyène, la girafe est impure ; animal ruminant ressemblant au bétail, sa viande est alors pure. Une autre légende, relative aux circonstances de la naissance dangereuse des girafons que leurs mères cherchent à tuer dès la fin de la parturition, n’est cependant pas venue contredire la légende de l’hybridité. L’observation de naissances de girafes en captivité dans les ménageries du Caire n’est pas parvenue non plus à affaiblir l’hypothèse de l’hybridité, qui a eu une longue postérité dans les livres des merveilles, encyclopédies et traités géographiques jusqu’à l’époque ottomane.
Two legends concerning the hybrid nature and the birth of giraffes are frequently cited in Arabic sources. The first legend explains that the giraffe is a hybrid of the camel, the ox and the hyena, sometimes appearing after two generations. This legend was probably influenced by Ancient Greek zoology, especially that of Timotheus of Gaza. Because of the supposedly hybrid nature of the camel, its alimentary status under Islamic dietary laws was a subject of long debate amongst religious scholars. As the hybrid off-spring of a hyena, the giraffe would be unclean; as the off-spring of a ruminant such as cattle, its flesh would be pure and fit to be eaten. Another legend, related to the dangerous birth of baby giraffes, indicates that they may be attacked and killed by their mothers just after giving birth. The legend was not seen as a contradiction to the story of their hybrid nature. Observation of the birth of giraffes in captivity in Cairo menageries did not undermine the theory that giraffes were hybrids which had a long afterlife in ‘books of marvels’, encyclopaedias and geographic treaties up until the Ottoman period.
Fabuleuses histoires des bêtes et des hommes, Jacques Toussaint (Ed.) (Namur, Trema, 2013), Nov 13, 2013
L'histoire des ménageries médiévales a été jusqu'à aujourd'hui relativement peu étudiée ; trop p... more L'histoire des ménageries médiévales a été jusqu'à aujourd'hui relativement peu étudiée ; trop peu d'études ont notamment été consacrées à la présence des animaux exotiques dans les ménageries. L'article présenté ici ne prétend pas aborder tous les thèmes possibles sur ce sujet ; nous avons choisi d'étudier la composition des ménageries (quelles espèces exotiques sont les plus fréquemment gardées en captivité ?), la quête de nouveauté et d'exotisme, et l'usage des bêtes exotiques dans la mise en scène du pouvoir et du faste des princes médiévaux.
Naming foreign and exotic animals at the end of the Middle Ages used two different ways: the Clas... more Naming foreign and exotic animals at the end of the Middle Ages used two different ways: the Classical tradition (quoting Latin or Greek names from authorities like Pliny, Isidore and others) or the vernacular use of foreign names (mainly Arabic). The case of the giraffe illustrates this philological balance between Antiquity and contemporary contacts with the oriental world. But for Centuries the link between the classical name and the real animal was broken: it took time for scholars to identify the animal named Giraffe from the Arabic zarâfa with the camelopardalis described by the Greeks and the Romans. We will study the story of this confusion (including the problems of translation between latin and roman vernacular languages), the story of the modern name from the Arabic, and the transmission of other zoonyms (anabulla, oraflus, serafe) used for giraffe at the end of the Middle Ages, names distorted form latin or arabic.
Medieval Animal Data-network blog (mad.hypotheses.org), Oct 5, 2013
There were many different legends in the Middle Ages about imaginary beasts and many imaginary pr... more There were many different legends in the Middle Ages about imaginary beasts and many imaginary properties ascribed to real animals. One of these most striking properties concerns the ostrich’s ability to eat and digest iron. The discussion uses several examples of fact-checking from scholars or pilgrims, peopole wanting to check with their own eyes the realitty of the legend
Among the key animals kept in menageries were panthers, cheetahs and lions. Sometimes these felin... more Among the key animals kept in menageries were panthers, cheetahs and lions. Sometimes these felines would escape and kill people in the cities or even their own keepers. Linked to the former, keeping savage felines at court was a way to demonstrate how the ruler or the prince presented himself as the Tamer of the Beasts, ruling over such fearsome exotic animals. The paper will concern the interplay between the observed behavior of these big cats and their controlled proximity to power.
From Charlemagne to Lorenzo da Medici, emperors, kings, and princes possessed menageries, contain... more From Charlemagne to Lorenzo da Medici, emperors, kings, and princes possessed menageries, containing hunting animals (dogs, falcons and cheetahs) and exotic beasts (lions, elephants, giraffes, panthers, etc.). These menageries were used as a mark of luxury, magnificence and power. This paper will study how medieval rulers used their collections of exotic animals as a display of their social status, with some examples of the high costs of maintenance of animals (salaries of keepers, food, stables, etc.). We will give some examples of the use of animals shown in triumphs or exchanged with oriental kings to emphasize their power and influence.
On their way to the Holy Land, pilgrims frequently visited Cairo and described in their writings ... more On their way to the Holy Land, pilgrims frequently visited Cairo and described in their writings some of the curious creatures they encountered in Egypt : rare exotic animals, mostly unknown or unseen in Europe, like elephants, giraffes, rare birds, crocodiles, etc. Their accounts provide us with precious information about oriental menageries and the sale of African and Indian animals in the markets. While their surprise, admiration and curiosity in the face of oriental wonders is understandable, the way pilgrims describe animals and name them (sometimes with Arabic zoonyms) allows us to weigh their zoological knowledge and interests.
Le guépard, utilisé comme auxiliaire de chasse dans les mondes irano-persans et arabes depuis des... more Le guépard, utilisé comme auxiliaire de chasse dans les mondes irano-persans et arabes depuis des millénaires, et à ce titre bien connu et identifié dans ces aires culturelles, est longtemps resté en Occident un animal plus incertain, demeurant encore aujourd’hui difficile à repérer dans les sources médiévales. Son nom de « guépard » apparaissant en français seulement au 17e siècle, il ne semble pas posséder auparavant de nom en propre et porte le même zoonyme que la panthère, celui de « léopard ». De même, dans les images, il est parfois difficile de différencier les deux animaux. L’article tente donc de faire le point sur ces confusions en donnant quelques éléments aidant à l’identification de cet animal sans nom dans les textes et les images. L’article apporte des indications relatives au contexte littéraire ou documentaire, principalement à la fin du Moyen Âge, où le guépard faisait partie des équipages de chasse princiers, notamment en Italie, aussi noble que le faucon, mais recherché comme un objet de luxe et de prestige exotique.
"At the end of the twelfth century, Orderic Vital writes how the Emperor Alexis of Byzantium want... more "At the end of the twelfth century, Orderic Vital writes how the Emperor Alexis of Byzantium wanted to frighten the Lombard crusaders by sending to them 3 lions and seven “leopards”, wich are named “leopardos” in the original text.
But the crusaders killed the lions, who fought with great courage, and frightened the “leopards”, who escaped, crawled and jumped over the wall like cats.
There are two problems here :
1.First, we are not sure what really mean “leopardos” here : panthers, who can effectively climb easily walls as trees, or cheetahs, who are not known for their courage in front of men, and merely escape instead of attacking people.
2.Second : leopardos are compared with cats, but it seems that before modern zoological classifications, panthers, lyxes or cheetahs, or even lions had nothing to compare with the little and more familiar domestic cat.
I will not talk about the second point, for which I didn’t make any enquiry (but if something had an idea in the audience, it could be a interesting problem to discuss).
The first point is very important because we can find many mistakes even in scholar works about medieval felines. It is not a good idea to translate leopardus into panther or leopard, that is to say the zoological Panthera pardus, because mainly it could be a kind of anachronism to use modern taxonomies to identify animals in ancient texts. And people even think that panthers and leopards are two different species, whereas we have two vernacular names for one species, Panthera pardus.
The word Leopardus is an imperial-time invention, appearing during the 2nd century AD. It comes from the legend we can find in Pliny, that the lioness made adultery with the male panther (the pard, male of the pardalis) , though an hybrid name (leo + pardus) was create to name a new hybrid species. Im the late Antiquty we thus foun three species of panthers : panthera, pardalis (or pardus) and the new leopardus. A conumdrum of cats, like a byzantinist, Nick Nocholas, had written in a good paper. And we merely don’t know which species those three names exactly mean.
In the Middle Ages, those confusions continued, amd the Pard or leopard has a great success in bestiaries and literature because it will symbolize luxure and adultery.
But in vernacular context, in archive documents or chronicles we find leopardus and their derivative nouns (French lyepart for exemple), and then the sources are speaking about an animal belonging to royal menageries. The animal is tamed, and is used for hunting, like a dog, but we better say that he was trained like a falcon, affaytandum (French “affaitage”, falconery term) like it is written in a letter of the chancery of Emperor Frederic the Second. This kind of hunting was imported form islqmis court, where it is known for centuries, or even millennia in Persia and India.
The “leopard” here is clearly a cheetah, and we have a high number of accounts of courtly cheetahs in Italy, France, and in the English court since Henri Beauclerc.
Thus one can say : well, leopardus means cheetah in the end of the middle ages ! We can say yes, as we can see in some captions in Italian art of the fourteenth and fifteenth century, where we can recognize realistic cheetahs, which are named leopardus on the picture.
BUT we have to keep in mind that we are not sure in many less precise accounts (absence of description or vague context) of what is the zoological reality is under the name of leopardus. And we have of drawing of Giovannino de Grassi, wich, under the entry “leopardus” in a medicinal book (Historia plantarum) we have TWO very different animals for one name : one cheetah and one panther.
To finish this discussion, let’s go back to Orderic Vital descriptions of the elusive Byzantine “leopardos”. At this point, considerimg that oOrderic was writing at a time where cheetahs were not very well known and frequent in european courts : I will ask the audience a simple question : do you think that Orderic was depicting cheetahs or panthers ?"
L’objectif de la communication est de faire le point sur la place, le rôle, et l’utilisation des ... more L’objectif de la communication est de faire le point sur la place, le rôle, et l’utilisation des animaux exotiques dans la ménagerie de Frédéric II. Quels étaient ces animaux ? Comment étaient-ils arrivés en Italie ? Quelles traces ont-ils laissé dans les textes et les images ? Quel usage symbolique en a fait l’empereur ? Nous nous intéresserons principalement aux deux espèces les plus spectaculaires de la ménagerie, offerts tous deux par le sultan Al-Kamil : l’éléphant (bien connu et documenté) et la girafe (les sources sont rares pour cette dernière, et les circonstances de son séjour en Europe difficiles à reconstituer).
Zoomathia Conference 2021 - Ichtya
The conference Transmission of knowledge on fish and aquatic ... more Zoomathia Conference 2021 - Ichtya
The conference Transmission of knowledge on fish and aquatic animals, texts and images (Antiquity, Middle Ages, 16th century) will be the closing event of GDRI Zoomathia, which ends at the end of 2021. In 2017, an international symposium was held in the International Cultural Center of Cerisy-la-Salle, entitled Aquatic Animals and Monsters of the Northern Seas. Imagination, knowledge, exploitation, from Antiquity to 1600, whose proceedings were published in the journal Anthropozoologica in 2018. The Zoomathia 2021 conference in Caen, organized by the ICHTYA program of Craham, is an extension of the 2017 conference.
This conference wishes to stress on 1) the scientific contribution of ancient sources on aquafauna and the biological and ecological knowledge of the species that compose it; 2) the transmission and diachronic evolution of scholarly data on this fauna through the various knowledge media (texts, iconography - including mosaics, illuminated manuscripts, early printed books and engravings, etc.); 3) the way of representing marine animals species in the tradition and the keys for identifying these species provided by ancient documentation, as well as the methodological issues involved in these historical depictions. Note that the focus of the Conference is not restricted to ichthyofauna, but encompass all forms of aquatic living animals.
Read the detailed call for papers (Deadline: January 4, 2021)
Annetta Alexandridis (Cornell University, New York) Thierry Buquet (CNRS, Craham, University of Caen Normandy) Isabelle Draelants (CNRS IRHT) Jean-Charles Ducène (EPHE) Brigitte Gauvin (University of Caen Normandy) Stavros Lazaris (CNRS, UMR Orient et Méditerranée, Paris) Jacqueline Leclercq-Marx (ULB - Brussels) Marie-Agnès Lucas-Avenel (University of Caen Normandy) Jean Trinquier (École normale supérieure, Paris) Baudouin Van den Abeele (Catholic University of Louvain) Arnaud Zucker (University of Nice)
Deadline for abstract submission: May, 31st 2016
Place : Centre culturel de Cerisy-la-Salle (Fran... more Deadline for abstract submission: May, 31st 2016 Place : Centre culturel de Cerisy-la-Salle (France, Normandy), May 32st – June 3rd 2017
The Colloquium is devoted to the history of fish, aquatic monsters and mammals in the northern seas (the English Channel, North Sea, Baltic Sea, Norwegian Sea, the North Atlantic), from antiquity to 1600. The colloquium is based on three themes: –Knowledge and the Transmission of Knowledge : Medical Knowledge, Zoological Knowledge, Descriptions, Identifications –Savoir-faire and Exploitation: aquatic farming, fishing, cooking, medicine –Explorations – real and imaginary
The event is organised by the Centre for Research in Archaeology, Ancient History and the Middle Ages (CRAHAM, University of Caen Normandy, UMR6273) as part of the research programme ICHTYA and that of the International Research Group, GDRI Zoomathia. It belongs to the cycle of colloquia on Medieval Normandy, organised by the Office Universitaire d’Etudes Normandes in partnership with the Centre Culturel International of Cerisy la Salle. Colloquium website : http://ichtya2017.sciencesconf.org/
https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01891591 – Compte rendu de lecture de l'ouvrage de Sar... more https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01891591 – Compte rendu de lecture de l'ouvrage de Sarah Kay, Animal Skins and the Reading Self in Medieval Latin and French Bestiaries. Sarah Kay, professeure de litterature française à l’université de New York, propose, dans ce court et dense ouvrage, une etude originale sur les bestiaires médiévaux. Si S. Kay a dejà publié de nombreux articles sur les bestiaires latins et romans, elle propose ici un essai ambitieux qui aborde différentes thématiques : la philologie (histoire des différentes familles issues du Physiologus), la codicologie (les bestiaires dans leur matérialité manuscrite, notamment celui de l’espace de la page, faite de parchemin), la psychologie (projection du « moi » du lecteur dans la matérialitéde la lecture), l’analyse littéraire (étude de chapitres relatifs àde nombreux animaux, notamment concernant le rapport à la peau) et la philosophie (reflexions sur la cesure homme-animal). Il s’agit d’analyser comment les bestiaires ont eté recus et apprehendés par leurs lecteurs, et comment ils ont pu influencer la perception de la relation homme-animal.
Buquet Thierry, « Mikhail, Alan, The Animal in Ottoman Egypt (Oxford University Press, 2014) », R... more Buquet Thierry, « Mikhail, Alan, The Animal in Ottoman Egypt (Oxford University Press, 2014) », Revue des mondes musulmans et de la Méditerranée, Lectures inédites, mis en ligne le 04 juillet 2016, [En ligne] http://remmm.revues.org/9361
La notice du manuscrit Avranches, Bibliothèque patrimoniale, 222 dans le cadre du projet Biblioth... more La notice du manuscrit Avranches, Bibliothèque patrimoniale, 222 dans le cadre du projet Bibliothèque virtuelle du Mont Saint-Michel (BVMSM)
Ce numéro de RursuSpicae cherche à mettre l’accent sur l’apport scientifique des sources ancienne... more Ce numéro de RursuSpicae cherche à mettre l’accent sur l’apport scientifique des sources anciennes sur l’aquafaune, sur la transmission et l’évolution diachronique des données savantes sur les animaux marins dans les textes et les images, sur le mode de représentation et l’identification des espèces d’animaux marins permises par les documents anciens, et sur les questions méthodologiques qui s’y rattachent. Les articles qui constituent ce numéro thématique sur les animaux aquatiques sont issus de communications présentées au colloque international intitulé « Transmission des savoirs sur les poissons et les animaux aquatiques. Textes et images, Antiquité, Moyen Âge, XVIe siècle ». Cette rencontre, organisée dans le cadre du réseau international de recherche (IRN) Zoomathia sur la zoologie antique et médiévale, a eu lieu du 4 au 6 novembre 2021 à l’Université de Caen Normandie. L’initiative en revient au programme Ichtya (Corpus de traités latins d’ichtyologie et histoire des savoirs sur la faune aquatique), hébergé au Craham (UMR 6273) de Caen (et en particulier à Thierry Buquet et Brigitte Gauvin), et au CEPAM (UMR 7264) de l’Université Côte d’Azur, en la personne d’Arnaud Zucker. Le colloque s’inscrit dans la continuité des travaux du programme Ichtya sur la transmission des savoirs sur les animaux aquatiques, s’insérant parfaitement à la fois dans les recherches menées dans Zoomathia, et dans la série de manifestations scientifiques programmées chaque année par ce réseau.
Uploads
Download PDF at : https://hal.science/hal-04292062
An article by Michel Pastoureau (2008) laid the foundations for a reflection on the relationship between medieval princely menageries and zoological knowledge, between observation of rare species, verification of ancient legends, scholarly discourse and possible experimentation, relying mainly on the cases of the elephant and the bear. The present article explores the few hypotheses put forward in this study, relying, in addition to the elephant, on the cases of the lion (frequently included in medieval menageries) and the ostrich. For these three species, certain legends, transmitted or not by the Bestiaries, could be invalidated by observation, or even by experiment: the elephants would not have knees; the cubs would be born “dead” and would be “resurrected” after three days; the ostrich would be able to eat metal. Those who observe exotic animals in captivity are divided between two opposing poles: wanting to justify ancient beliefs on the one hand, and contradicting and explaining the errors of the authorities on the other. These observations and possible refutations of ancient legends had only a limited influence on medieval knowledge on exotic animals, particularly in encyclopaedias, but they testify, mainly for the end of the Middle Ages, to a new critical approach in which what was seen had to be assessed from what was known from the texts (and vice versa).
Au Moyen Âge, la connaissance de la faune étrangère exotique (africaine et indienne) doit beaucoup à la transmission des auteurs antiques (Aristote, Pline, Solin) et des premiers auteurs chrétiens (Physiologus, Isidore de Séville, Pères de l’église). Pourtant on observe, notamment au XIIIe siècle, l’apparition de nouveaux savoirs dans les encyclopédies et autres textes d’histoire naturelle apparentés. Ces nouveaux savoirs doivent peu aux autorités anciennes et sont le fruit d’apports nouveaux, liés à l’observation directe (animaux de ménageries) ou à des savoirs vernaculaires (voyageurs, marchands, chasseurs, pêcheurs, marins, etc.). C’est particulièrement le cas pour les animaux mal connus du Nord de l’Europe, mettant en lumière un exotisme venu du froid, dans le cadre d’échanges accrus avec le monde scandinave. L’exposé tentera de mettre en valeur ces apports, notamment dans l’introduction de nouvelles espèces ou de nouveaux zoonymes dans l’inventaire du monde vivant, mais aussi dans les compléments d’informations apportés sur les savoirs anciens. Notre enquête portera principalement sur Thomas de Cantimpré et Albert le Grand, avec des compléments tirés de Barthélemy l’Anglais, Vincent de Beauvais et Alexandre Neckam. Nous essayerons de mettre en avant l’apport fondamental de Thomas de Cantimpré dans cet enrichissement du monde animal exotique médiéval, en le comparant avec l’approche de ses contemporains.
Les animaux exotiques les plus rares et les plus chers, comme l’éléphant ou la girafe, avaient une place de choix parmi les cadeaux diplomatiques entre Occident latin, monde byzantin et Orient islamique. Mais le don d’un éléphant ou d’une girafe nécessitait une logistique importante, comprenant la capture dans le milieu naturel – fort éloigné des capitales arabes – le transport, les soins vétérinaires, l’alimentation et le logement au départ et à l’arrivée chez le destinataire du cadeau. Les témoignages sur ces réalités matérielles des ménageries médiévales sont très rares et les informations transmises peu précises. Nous essaierons néanmoins, à partir de quelques exemples, d’évaluer les difficultés de cette logistique du cadeau diplomatique, pouvant conduire à la mort des animaux transportés et donc à la « destruction », totale ou partielle, du cadeau diplomatique. Nous évoquerons une autre contrainte importante : la durée nécessaire allant de la capture initiale au don final, pouvant prendre plusieurs mois, voire plusieurs années. Les souverains désireux d’offrir les animaux les plus rares devaient donc être en contact avec des marchands spécialisés capables de fournir et de vendre les espèces les plus éloignées. Nous évoquerons donc, quand la documentation le permet, le coût financier de telles entreprises, notamment le prix d’acquisition de certains animaux. Nous apporterons un contrepoint à l’exotisme zoologique indien ou africain en donnant quelques exemples d’importation d’animaux du Grand Nord, notamment des ours blancs et des gerfauts, ces derniers étant extrêmement prisés des fauconniers arabes. Offrir des animaux aussi rares et chers, venant des régions éloignées du Nord et du Sud, parfois selon la demande même du récipiendaire, nécessitait des réseaux marchands complexes, pour parvenir, en fin de compte à une mise en scène du don.
The arctic fauna, very rarely mentioned in Classical texts, is progressively discovered by medieval scholars trough maritime and commercial contacts with Northern peoples. This new information sometimes allows Latin authors to enhance the sketchy data transmitted by Aristoteles, Pliny or Solinus. This paper focuses on this kind of zoological information found in Thomas of Cantimpré’s Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) through the geographical data given by the author, and through the zoological identification of the species. Thomas’ references on Northern fauna are compared to those found in books on animals written by Alexander Neckam, Vincent of Beauvais, Bartholomeus Anglicus and Albertus Magnus, to evaluate which information they share or not in their approach of Northern fauna.
Cheetah hunting was a quite common practice in European courts since the 13th century, especially in Italy and France. The use of the cheetah as a hunting auxiliary was imported from Arabic courts, and Frederic II Hohenstaufen was probably the first ruler to hunt with these cats imported form the Maghreb and the Near East. One could find earlier mentions of cheetah in courts —England— but without any proof of its use at hunt. The fashion of cheetah hunting will increase in Italy during the 14th Century, to be at its apogee in the 15th C. We lack European technical hunting treaties about cheetah hunting, but they are many other sources relating the cheetah hunting (narrative, chronicles, accounts, etc.). Cheetah was also deeply used as a diplomatic gift: princes, rulers and kings were frequently asking for this animal to renew their hunting menageries, as they did with falcons. Cheetah hunting was still a common practice (France and Italy mainly) in the 16th Century, but seems to decrease at the end of this century, and disappears during the first half of the 17th Century. For example, it is striking to observe that Buffon didn’t know at all the Cheetah, never saw a living specimen but only pelts. In the 18th Century, European naturalists and scientists in Europe have forgotten this animal, which seems to have been replaced in menageries by the panther. After giving a quick look on the history of the Cheetah hunting, the aim of this paper is to study the different hypothesis explaining the end of this fashion in Europe, where, on the contrary, it still goes on in Oriental courts until the 19th C., especially in Persia and India.
https://journals.openedition.org/rursuspicae/540
Manuscript 28 of Avranches is the result of the binding together of two distinct codices in the seventeenth century. It consists of various short religious texts: commentaries and biblical glosses, distinctiones, treatises on vices and virtues, sermons, etc. Among this extensive textual material for preaching use, in the second part of the manuscript (dating from the 13th century), we find a bestiary entitled De proprietatibus quorundam animalium (f. 179-180). This is the unique text on animals surviving from the library of the Mont Saint-Michel Abbey. A short collection of exempla (partly involving animals) is added to the bestiary, and is entitled Ecce similitudines multe de diversis (f. 180-180v). The bestiary and the collection of similitudines seem to form a set; they may have had the same use for the compiler. The bestiary consists of about 30 short chapters, ten of which are perfect copies of the B version of the Physiologus; other chapters can be sourced partly in B or Y, but are often summarized and contain original moralizations which differ from other versions of the Latin Physiologus. I am making the assumption that the author of the bestiary of Avranches may have worked from an incomplete witness to B where the elephant and dove were missing, and where ostrich (asida), panther and aspidochelon were found at the end of the text of the B version, such as in the codex of Bern, Bürgerbibliothek, Lat. 233. The bestiary of Avranches is interesting in two ways: it is an additional (though partial) witness to Physiologus B but is also a mixed work, original in its composition and in some of its chapters, testifying to the reception and use of ancient versions of the Physiologus among 13th century preachers.
La Chevalerie de Judas Macchabée et de ses nobles frères, roman en vers daté de 1285, utilise à plusieurs reprises les animaux comme motifs narratifs symboliques. Certains animaux (dont l’anabulla un des noms de la girafe au XIIIe siècle) sont empruntés au Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) de Thomas de Cantimpré. L’analyse du texte de la Chevalerie et l’illustration de son unique témoin manuscrit (Paris, BnF Fr. 15104) montre que l’auteur s’est non pas inspiré du texte de Thomas de Cantimpré, mais de l’illustration du manuscrit 320 de Valenciennes (témoin du LDNR), dont le programme iconographique (dont ont été conservées les instructions pour l’enlumineur en notes marginales) présente des écarts par rapport au contenu textuel – erreurs qui seront transmises dans des témoins enluminés postérieurs du LDNR. Ainsi, l’anabulla et l’aloy y sont représentés comme des éléphants, alors qu’il s’agit respectivement d’une girafe et d’un élan. L’auteur de la Chevalerie décrit dans son roman ces deux animaux comme des éléphants, montrant par-là que sa source n’est pas le texte latin du LDNR, mais des illustrations “fautives” d’un témoin manuscrit particulier.
Le manuscrit 97 d’Avranches, originaire du Mont Saint-Michel, datable du début du XIe siècle, contient les livres 1 à 16 des Moralia in Job de Grégoire le Grand. La reliure du manuscrit a été restaurée au XVIIe siècle par les moines mauristes. Lors du catalogage du manuscrit en janvier 2019, dans le cadre de la Bibliothèque virtuelle du Mont Saint-Michel (BVMSM), j’ai constaté que des fragments de parchemin médiéval ont été utilisés pour renforcer la reliure au niveau du contreplat inférieur. Celui-ci porte une écriture dite « caroline » datable du XIe siècle, ou du début du XIIe. Ces fragments contiennent des passages du commentaire sur la grammaire latine de Donat par Rémi d’Auxerre, ainsi que des extraits d’un traité grammatical, l’Institutio de nomine et pronomine et verbo, de Priscien de Césarée. Ces fragments ont appartenu à un recueil du XIe siècle, appartenant à l’abbaye montoise, ouvrage ayant certainement servi à l’étude et à l’enseignement de la langue latine
Introduction. For a history of aquatic animals of the northern seas.
From May, 31st to June 3rd, 2017, an international conference was held at the Cerisy-la-Salle International Cultural Center, entitled “Aquatic animals and Monsters of the Northern Seas (Imagination, knowledge, exploitation, from Antiquity to 1600)”, organized by the Centre Michel de Boüard – Craham (UMR 6273, Université de Caen Normandie – CNRS). The introduction to the proceedings of this conference presents first the scientific context, and the research programs Dyrin (history of the Nordic fauna in the Middle Ages) and Ichtya (history of knowledge on fish from Antiquity to the Renaissance) in which the organizers of the conference are involved. A quick summary presents the state of art about studies on the history of northern animals, where the bibliography is still scarce, far from covering all possible topics, notably that of the European perception of the Scandinavian fauna. Then we summarize the state of knowledge on the history of ancient, medieval and renaissance ichtyological knowledge, with a specific focus on the habitat of marine species, the naming of fishes and marine mammals and their use in human nutrition. Finally, we present the various papers published in the volume, grouped under the topics developed during the conference (identification, naming and classification; animal products, fishing, trade and food; literature, representations, imagination and allegories).
This bibliography presents only secondary literature, no sources at all for the moment.
Two legends concerning the hybrid nature and the birth of giraffes are frequently cited in Arabic sources. The first legend explains that the giraffe is a hybrid of the camel, the ox and the hyena, sometimes appearing after two generations. This legend was probably influenced by Ancient Greek zoology, especially that of Timotheus of Gaza. Because of the supposedly hybrid nature of the camel, its alimentary status under Islamic dietary laws was a subject of long debate amongst religious scholars. As the hybrid off-spring of a hyena, the giraffe would be unclean; as the off-spring of a ruminant such as cattle, its flesh would be pure and fit to be eaten. Another legend, related to the dangerous birth of baby giraffes, indicates that they may be attacked and killed by their mothers just after giving birth. The legend was not seen as a contradiction to the story of their hybrid nature. Observation of the birth of giraffes in captivity in Cairo menageries did not undermine the theory that giraffes were hybrids which had a long afterlife in ‘books of marvels’, encyclopaedias and geographic treaties up until the Ottoman period.
Download PDF at : https://hal.science/hal-04292062
An article by Michel Pastoureau (2008) laid the foundations for a reflection on the relationship between medieval princely menageries and zoological knowledge, between observation of rare species, verification of ancient legends, scholarly discourse and possible experimentation, relying mainly on the cases of the elephant and the bear. The present article explores the few hypotheses put forward in this study, relying, in addition to the elephant, on the cases of the lion (frequently included in medieval menageries) and the ostrich. For these three species, certain legends, transmitted or not by the Bestiaries, could be invalidated by observation, or even by experiment: the elephants would not have knees; the cubs would be born “dead” and would be “resurrected” after three days; the ostrich would be able to eat metal. Those who observe exotic animals in captivity are divided between two opposing poles: wanting to justify ancient beliefs on the one hand, and contradicting and explaining the errors of the authorities on the other. These observations and possible refutations of ancient legends had only a limited influence on medieval knowledge on exotic animals, particularly in encyclopaedias, but they testify, mainly for the end of the Middle Ages, to a new critical approach in which what was seen had to be assessed from what was known from the texts (and vice versa).
Au Moyen Âge, la connaissance de la faune étrangère exotique (africaine et indienne) doit beaucoup à la transmission des auteurs antiques (Aristote, Pline, Solin) et des premiers auteurs chrétiens (Physiologus, Isidore de Séville, Pères de l’église). Pourtant on observe, notamment au XIIIe siècle, l’apparition de nouveaux savoirs dans les encyclopédies et autres textes d’histoire naturelle apparentés. Ces nouveaux savoirs doivent peu aux autorités anciennes et sont le fruit d’apports nouveaux, liés à l’observation directe (animaux de ménageries) ou à des savoirs vernaculaires (voyageurs, marchands, chasseurs, pêcheurs, marins, etc.). C’est particulièrement le cas pour les animaux mal connus du Nord de l’Europe, mettant en lumière un exotisme venu du froid, dans le cadre d’échanges accrus avec le monde scandinave. L’exposé tentera de mettre en valeur ces apports, notamment dans l’introduction de nouvelles espèces ou de nouveaux zoonymes dans l’inventaire du monde vivant, mais aussi dans les compléments d’informations apportés sur les savoirs anciens. Notre enquête portera principalement sur Thomas de Cantimpré et Albert le Grand, avec des compléments tirés de Barthélemy l’Anglais, Vincent de Beauvais et Alexandre Neckam. Nous essayerons de mettre en avant l’apport fondamental de Thomas de Cantimpré dans cet enrichissement du monde animal exotique médiéval, en le comparant avec l’approche de ses contemporains.
Les animaux exotiques les plus rares et les plus chers, comme l’éléphant ou la girafe, avaient une place de choix parmi les cadeaux diplomatiques entre Occident latin, monde byzantin et Orient islamique. Mais le don d’un éléphant ou d’une girafe nécessitait une logistique importante, comprenant la capture dans le milieu naturel – fort éloigné des capitales arabes – le transport, les soins vétérinaires, l’alimentation et le logement au départ et à l’arrivée chez le destinataire du cadeau. Les témoignages sur ces réalités matérielles des ménageries médiévales sont très rares et les informations transmises peu précises. Nous essaierons néanmoins, à partir de quelques exemples, d’évaluer les difficultés de cette logistique du cadeau diplomatique, pouvant conduire à la mort des animaux transportés et donc à la « destruction », totale ou partielle, du cadeau diplomatique. Nous évoquerons une autre contrainte importante : la durée nécessaire allant de la capture initiale au don final, pouvant prendre plusieurs mois, voire plusieurs années. Les souverains désireux d’offrir les animaux les plus rares devaient donc être en contact avec des marchands spécialisés capables de fournir et de vendre les espèces les plus éloignées. Nous évoquerons donc, quand la documentation le permet, le coût financier de telles entreprises, notamment le prix d’acquisition de certains animaux. Nous apporterons un contrepoint à l’exotisme zoologique indien ou africain en donnant quelques exemples d’importation d’animaux du Grand Nord, notamment des ours blancs et des gerfauts, ces derniers étant extrêmement prisés des fauconniers arabes. Offrir des animaux aussi rares et chers, venant des régions éloignées du Nord et du Sud, parfois selon la demande même du récipiendaire, nécessitait des réseaux marchands complexes, pour parvenir, en fin de compte à une mise en scène du don.
The arctic fauna, very rarely mentioned in Classical texts, is progressively discovered by medieval scholars trough maritime and commercial contacts with Northern peoples. This new information sometimes allows Latin authors to enhance the sketchy data transmitted by Aristoteles, Pliny or Solinus. This paper focuses on this kind of zoological information found in Thomas of Cantimpré’s Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) through the geographical data given by the author, and through the zoological identification of the species. Thomas’ references on Northern fauna are compared to those found in books on animals written by Alexander Neckam, Vincent of Beauvais, Bartholomeus Anglicus and Albertus Magnus, to evaluate which information they share or not in their approach of Northern fauna.
Cheetah hunting was a quite common practice in European courts since the 13th century, especially in Italy and France. The use of the cheetah as a hunting auxiliary was imported from Arabic courts, and Frederic II Hohenstaufen was probably the first ruler to hunt with these cats imported form the Maghreb and the Near East. One could find earlier mentions of cheetah in courts —England— but without any proof of its use at hunt. The fashion of cheetah hunting will increase in Italy during the 14th Century, to be at its apogee in the 15th C. We lack European technical hunting treaties about cheetah hunting, but they are many other sources relating the cheetah hunting (narrative, chronicles, accounts, etc.). Cheetah was also deeply used as a diplomatic gift: princes, rulers and kings were frequently asking for this animal to renew their hunting menageries, as they did with falcons. Cheetah hunting was still a common practice (France and Italy mainly) in the 16th Century, but seems to decrease at the end of this century, and disappears during the first half of the 17th Century. For example, it is striking to observe that Buffon didn’t know at all the Cheetah, never saw a living specimen but only pelts. In the 18th Century, European naturalists and scientists in Europe have forgotten this animal, which seems to have been replaced in menageries by the panther. After giving a quick look on the history of the Cheetah hunting, the aim of this paper is to study the different hypothesis explaining the end of this fashion in Europe, where, on the contrary, it still goes on in Oriental courts until the 19th C., especially in Persia and India.
https://journals.openedition.org/rursuspicae/540
Manuscript 28 of Avranches is the result of the binding together of two distinct codices in the seventeenth century. It consists of various short religious texts: commentaries and biblical glosses, distinctiones, treatises on vices and virtues, sermons, etc. Among this extensive textual material for preaching use, in the second part of the manuscript (dating from the 13th century), we find a bestiary entitled De proprietatibus quorundam animalium (f. 179-180). This is the unique text on animals surviving from the library of the Mont Saint-Michel Abbey. A short collection of exempla (partly involving animals) is added to the bestiary, and is entitled Ecce similitudines multe de diversis (f. 180-180v). The bestiary and the collection of similitudines seem to form a set; they may have had the same use for the compiler. The bestiary consists of about 30 short chapters, ten of which are perfect copies of the B version of the Physiologus; other chapters can be sourced partly in B or Y, but are often summarized and contain original moralizations which differ from other versions of the Latin Physiologus. I am making the assumption that the author of the bestiary of Avranches may have worked from an incomplete witness to B where the elephant and dove were missing, and where ostrich (asida), panther and aspidochelon were found at the end of the text of the B version, such as in the codex of Bern, Bürgerbibliothek, Lat. 233. The bestiary of Avranches is interesting in two ways: it is an additional (though partial) witness to Physiologus B but is also a mixed work, original in its composition and in some of its chapters, testifying to the reception and use of ancient versions of the Physiologus among 13th century preachers.
La Chevalerie de Judas Macchabée et de ses nobles frères, roman en vers daté de 1285, utilise à plusieurs reprises les animaux comme motifs narratifs symboliques. Certains animaux (dont l’anabulla un des noms de la girafe au XIIIe siècle) sont empruntés au Liber de natura rerum (LDNR) de Thomas de Cantimpré. L’analyse du texte de la Chevalerie et l’illustration de son unique témoin manuscrit (Paris, BnF Fr. 15104) montre que l’auteur s’est non pas inspiré du texte de Thomas de Cantimpré, mais de l’illustration du manuscrit 320 de Valenciennes (témoin du LDNR), dont le programme iconographique (dont ont été conservées les instructions pour l’enlumineur en notes marginales) présente des écarts par rapport au contenu textuel – erreurs qui seront transmises dans des témoins enluminés postérieurs du LDNR. Ainsi, l’anabulla et l’aloy y sont représentés comme des éléphants, alors qu’il s’agit respectivement d’une girafe et d’un élan. L’auteur de la Chevalerie décrit dans son roman ces deux animaux comme des éléphants, montrant par-là que sa source n’est pas le texte latin du LDNR, mais des illustrations “fautives” d’un témoin manuscrit particulier.
Le manuscrit 97 d’Avranches, originaire du Mont Saint-Michel, datable du début du XIe siècle, contient les livres 1 à 16 des Moralia in Job de Grégoire le Grand. La reliure du manuscrit a été restaurée au XVIIe siècle par les moines mauristes. Lors du catalogage du manuscrit en janvier 2019, dans le cadre de la Bibliothèque virtuelle du Mont Saint-Michel (BVMSM), j’ai constaté que des fragments de parchemin médiéval ont été utilisés pour renforcer la reliure au niveau du contreplat inférieur. Celui-ci porte une écriture dite « caroline » datable du XIe siècle, ou du début du XIIe. Ces fragments contiennent des passages du commentaire sur la grammaire latine de Donat par Rémi d’Auxerre, ainsi que des extraits d’un traité grammatical, l’Institutio de nomine et pronomine et verbo, de Priscien de Césarée. Ces fragments ont appartenu à un recueil du XIe siècle, appartenant à l’abbaye montoise, ouvrage ayant certainement servi à l’étude et à l’enseignement de la langue latine
Introduction. For a history of aquatic animals of the northern seas.
From May, 31st to June 3rd, 2017, an international conference was held at the Cerisy-la-Salle International Cultural Center, entitled “Aquatic animals and Monsters of the Northern Seas (Imagination, knowledge, exploitation, from Antiquity to 1600)”, organized by the Centre Michel de Boüard – Craham (UMR 6273, Université de Caen Normandie – CNRS). The introduction to the proceedings of this conference presents first the scientific context, and the research programs Dyrin (history of the Nordic fauna in the Middle Ages) and Ichtya (history of knowledge on fish from Antiquity to the Renaissance) in which the organizers of the conference are involved. A quick summary presents the state of art about studies on the history of northern animals, where the bibliography is still scarce, far from covering all possible topics, notably that of the European perception of the Scandinavian fauna. Then we summarize the state of knowledge on the history of ancient, medieval and renaissance ichtyological knowledge, with a specific focus on the habitat of marine species, the naming of fishes and marine mammals and their use in human nutrition. Finally, we present the various papers published in the volume, grouped under the topics developed during the conference (identification, naming and classification; animal products, fishing, trade and food; literature, representations, imagination and allegories).
This bibliography presents only secondary literature, no sources at all for the moment.
Two legends concerning the hybrid nature and the birth of giraffes are frequently cited in Arabic sources. The first legend explains that the giraffe is a hybrid of the camel, the ox and the hyena, sometimes appearing after two generations. This legend was probably influenced by Ancient Greek zoology, especially that of Timotheus of Gaza. Because of the supposedly hybrid nature of the camel, its alimentary status under Islamic dietary laws was a subject of long debate amongst religious scholars. As the hybrid off-spring of a hyena, the giraffe would be unclean; as the off-spring of a ruminant such as cattle, its flesh would be pure and fit to be eaten. Another legend, related to the dangerous birth of baby giraffes, indicates that they may be attacked and killed by their mothers just after giving birth. The legend was not seen as a contradiction to the story of their hybrid nature. Observation of the birth of giraffes in captivity in Cairo menageries did not undermine the theory that giraffes were hybrids which had a long afterlife in ‘books of marvels’, encyclopaedias and geographic treaties up until the Ottoman period.
But the crusaders killed the lions, who fought with great courage, and frightened the “leopards”, who escaped, crawled and jumped over the wall like cats.
There are two problems here :
1.First, we are not sure what really mean “leopardos” here : panthers, who can effectively climb easily walls as trees, or cheetahs, who are not known for their courage in front of men, and merely escape instead of attacking people.
2.Second : leopardos are compared with cats, but it seems that before modern zoological classifications, panthers, lyxes or cheetahs, or even lions had nothing to compare with the little and more familiar domestic cat.
I will not talk about the second point, for which I didn’t make any enquiry (but if something had an idea in the audience, it could be a interesting problem to discuss).
The first point is very important because we can find many mistakes even in scholar works about medieval felines. It is not a good idea to translate leopardus into panther or leopard, that is to say the zoological Panthera pardus, because mainly it could be a kind of anachronism to use modern taxonomies to identify animals in ancient texts. And people even think that panthers and leopards are two different species, whereas we have two vernacular names for one species, Panthera pardus.
The word Leopardus is an imperial-time invention, appearing during the 2nd century AD. It comes from the legend we can find in Pliny, that the lioness made adultery with the male panther (the pard, male of the pardalis) , though an hybrid name (leo + pardus) was create to name a new hybrid species. Im the late Antiquty we thus foun three species of panthers : panthera, pardalis (or pardus) and the new leopardus. A conumdrum of cats, like a byzantinist, Nick Nocholas, had written in a good paper. And we merely don’t know which species those three names exactly mean.
In the Middle Ages, those confusions continued, amd the Pard or leopard has a great success in bestiaries and literature because it will symbolize luxure and adultery.
But in vernacular context, in archive documents or chronicles we find leopardus and their derivative nouns (French lyepart for exemple), and then the sources are speaking about an animal belonging to royal menageries. The animal is tamed, and is used for hunting, like a dog, but we better say that he was trained like a falcon, affaytandum (French “affaitage”, falconery term) like it is written in a letter of the chancery of Emperor Frederic the Second. This kind of hunting was imported form islqmis court, where it is known for centuries, or even millennia in Persia and India.
The “leopard” here is clearly a cheetah, and we have a high number of accounts of courtly cheetahs in Italy, France, and in the English court since Henri Beauclerc.
Thus one can say : well, leopardus means cheetah in the end of the middle ages ! We can say yes, as we can see in some captions in Italian art of the fourteenth and fifteenth century, where we can recognize realistic cheetahs, which are named leopardus on the picture.
BUT we have to keep in mind that we are not sure in many less precise accounts (absence of description or vague context) of what is the zoological reality is under the name of leopardus. And we have of drawing of Giovannino de Grassi, wich, under the entry “leopardus” in a medicinal book (Historia plantarum) we have TWO very different animals for one name : one cheetah and one panther.
To finish this discussion, let’s go back to Orderic Vital descriptions of the elusive Byzantine “leopardos”. At this point, considerimg that oOrderic was writing at a time where cheetahs were not very well known and frequent in european courts : I will ask the audience a simple question : do you think that Orderic was depicting cheetahs or panthers ?"
The conference Transmission of knowledge on fish and aquatic animals, texts and images (Antiquity, Middle Ages, 16th century) will be the closing event of GDRI Zoomathia, which ends at the end of 2021. In 2017, an international symposium was held in the International Cultural Center of Cerisy-la-Salle, entitled Aquatic Animals and Monsters of the Northern Seas. Imagination, knowledge, exploitation, from Antiquity to 1600, whose proceedings were published in the journal Anthropozoologica in 2018. The Zoomathia 2021 conference in Caen, organized by the ICHTYA program of Craham, is an extension of the 2017 conference.
This conference wishes to stress on 1) the scientific contribution of ancient sources on aquafauna and the biological and ecological knowledge of the species that compose it; 2) the transmission and diachronic evolution of scholarly data on this fauna through the various knowledge media (texts, iconography - including mosaics, illuminated manuscripts, early printed books and engravings, etc.); 3) the way of representing marine animals species in the tradition and the keys for identifying these species provided by ancient documentation, as well as the methodological issues involved in these historical depictions. Note that the focus of the Conference is not restricted to ichthyofauna, but encompass all forms of aquatic living animals.
Read the detailed call for papers (Deadline: January 4, 2021)
https://zoomathia2021.sciencesconf.org/
Scientific Committee
Annetta Alexandridis (Cornell University, New York)
Thierry Buquet (CNRS, Craham, University of Caen Normandy)
Isabelle Draelants (CNRS IRHT)
Jean-Charles Ducène (EPHE)
Brigitte Gauvin (University of Caen Normandy)
Stavros Lazaris (CNRS, UMR Orient et Méditerranée, Paris)
Jacqueline Leclercq-Marx (ULB - Brussels)
Marie-Agnès Lucas-Avenel (University of Caen Normandy)
Jean Trinquier (École normale supérieure, Paris)
Baudouin Van den Abeele (Catholic University of Louvain)
Arnaud Zucker (University of Nice)
Place : Centre culturel de Cerisy-la-Salle (France, Normandy), May 32st – June 3rd 2017
The Colloquium is devoted to the history of fish, aquatic monsters and mammals in the northern seas (the English Channel, North Sea, Baltic Sea, Norwegian Sea, the North Atlantic), from antiquity to 1600. The colloquium is based on three themes:
–Knowledge and the Transmission of Knowledge : Medical Knowledge, Zoological Knowledge, Descriptions, Identifications
–Savoir-faire and Exploitation: aquatic farming, fishing, cooking, medicine
–Explorations – real and imaginary
The event is organised by the Centre for Research in Archaeology, Ancient History and the Middle Ages (CRAHAM, University of Caen Normandy, UMR6273) as part of the research programme ICHTYA and that of the International Research Group, GDRI Zoomathia. It belongs to the cycle of colloquia on Medieval Normandy, organised by the Office Universitaire d’Etudes Normandes in partnership with the Centre Culturel International of Cerisy la Salle.
Colloquium website : http://ichtya2017.sciencesconf.org/