Falconry

Falconry is the art of using a trained raptor (bird of prey) to hunt wild quarry like birds or small mammals. The practice dates to at least 2000 BC and birds used for falconry (or hawking, a near-synonymous term in the modern parlance) include buzzards, eagles, Harris hawk, Peregrine falcons, Lanner falcon, Gyrfalcon, goshawks, owls and kestrels, among others.

The pastime is complicated and time-consuming and, in America at least, requires a minimum two year apprenticeship. The raptors are not pets and do not establish a bond with their handlers beyond trust and food source. Objections to falconry have been raised by environmentalists (it is virtually outlawed in Australia, albeit indirectly, for example) but the falconry community has made significant and undeniable contributions to species conservation and protection. I don't know enough to have an opinion other than to suppose that the trainer/handler licensing should be stringent (not too different from my thoughts on parenting).

• The Ancient Art (from Master of the Mews: The Medieval Falconer)
• Wikipedia: falconry | falconry training.
• PBS: A Falconer's Memoir by Dan O'Brien.
• Youtube - falconry.

The lithographs below, produced in the mid-1800s, come from 'Traité de Fauconnerie' by H Schlegel and AH Verster de Wulverhorst [source].

Le Groënlandais, Faucon Blanc Mué

(Hooded White Greenlander falcon or gyrfalcon - based on a portrait of the bird by Pierre Louis Dubourcq)

Hooded falcon close-up

Titlepage of 'Traité de Fauconnerie', 1844-1853

Each of the above images was spliced together from screen captures;
click through to large and very large versions.

Tethering and training equipment used in falconry

Raptor* hoods

"Falconry hoods are among the very first pieces of equipment that a falconer will obtain when beginning to learn the art of falconry. A properly fitted hood ensures that the bird remains calm while in the presence of humans, as otherwise it may become alarmed and distraught. A hood is essential in making a bird ready for training. The acclimatization of the bird to humans is known as "manning" and is the first step in the training regimen." [source]

Make your own hood.

L'Émérillon Hagard, le Tiercelet sors et Hagard d'Émérillon

Le Tiercelet sors de l'Autour

Le tiercelet Hagard de Faucon d'Islande

L'Épervier sors et le Mouchet Hagard

Le Faucon Hagard

[A bird of prey "taken from a nest in the wild or bred in captivity is known as an eyas. A hawk trapped during its first year in the wild is called a passager, and a hawk trapped in its adult plumage is termed a haggard. The female peregrine falcon is properly called a falcon, and the male — which, in common with most species of raptors, is smaller than the female — is known as a tiercel." {source}]

Le Sacre Hagard

Le Gerfaut Sors

'Traité de Fauconnerie' (1844-1853) by Hermann Schlegel and Abraham H Verster van Wulverhorst is available online at Heinrich Heine Universität Düsseldorf [click 'Übersicht' for thumbnail pages] [Amazon]

"The finest work on Falconry which has ever been produced; not only on account of the beauty of the plates, wherein the hawks are depicted life-size and of the natural colours, but also for the general accuracy of the letterpress. [..]

Exclusive of the ornamented title-page, there are 16 folio plates, 2 of which are illustrative of Heron Hawking at the Loo, in 1844, with portraits of contemporary falconers; 2 others contain figures of hoods, jesses, lure, and other accessories; and the remaining 12 give life-sized coloured figures of the hawks employed by falconers, admirably drawn by Joseph Wolf and J. B. Sonderland."

As quoted from the veritable bible of falconry literature: 'Bibliotheca Accipitraria : A Catalogue of Books Ancient and Modern Relating to Falconry' By James Harting, 1891 (Revised) Online | Amazon | Bibliothecca Accipitraria II.

'Traité de Fauconnerie' was published in an elephant folio format (about 20x25 inches - hence, the descriptions talk of "life size" illustrations). It was issued in three instalments over nine years.

Less than one hundred copies were originally issued in the first edition between 1844 and 1853, of which only about fifty copies are known to have survived. I've seen prices in recent years ranging from £12,000 to £28,000 to £36,500 and the Abu Dhabi National Library was quoted more than £95,000 for a first edition copy last year to outfit their falconry collection.

Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens

"Preposterous!" cried Solomon in a rage.

The Kensington Gardens are in London..

…they stand quite still pretending to be flowers…

The fairies are exquisite dancers.

The fairies have their tiffs with the birds.

A chrysanthemum heard her..

The Serpentine is a lovely lake..

They will certainly mischief you.

Old Mr. Salford was a crab-apple of an old gentleman..

They all tickled him on the shoulder.

When her Majesty wants to know the time.

Put his strange case before old Solomon Caw.

If the bad ones among the fairies happen to be out..

When he heard Peter's voice..

"Peter Pan first appeared in a section of 'The Little White Bird', a 1902 novel written by JM Barrie for adults.

The character's best-known adventure debuted on 27 December 1904, in the stage play 'Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up'. The play was adapted and expanded somewhat as a novel, published in 1911 as 'Peter and Wendy' (later as 'Peter Pan and Wendy', and still later as simply 'Peter Pan').

Following the highly successful debut of the 1904 play, Barrie's publishers, Hodder and Stoughton, extracted chapters 13–18 of 'The Little White Bird' and republished them in 1906 under the title 'Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens', with the addition of illustrations by Arthur Rackham."

• By turns fantastical and sinister, the fifty Rackham illustrations for 'Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens' are available from Harvard University Library. (via)
  
• Arthur Rackham Society link collection.
• JM Barrie works at Googlebooks.
• Previoiusly: kids
  
• JM Barrie works at Amazon.

Speed Maps

"John Speed’s Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine is one of the world’s great cartographic treasures. Published in 1611/12, it marked the first time that comprehensive plans of English and Welsh counties and towns were made available in print. [..]

A slice of Tudor and Jacobean life in miniature, its influence was so great that it was used by armies on both sides of the English Civil War. [..]

The county maps were the first consistent attempt to show territorial divisions, but it was Speed’s town plans that were a major innovation and probably his greatest contribution to British cartography. Together, they formed the first printed collection of town plans of the British Isles and, for at least 50 of the 73 included in the Theatre, it was the first time these towns had been mapped."
[source]

A selection of the very rare hand-coloured proofs for the Speed atlas, produced between 1603 and 1611, is seen below. The collection of proofs was digitised recently by its owner, Cambridge University Library and prints of the maps are for sale.

The Kingdome of Great Britaine & Ireland

Graven by I. Hondius and are able to be ſolde by I Sudbury and George Humble in Popes head Alley in London. Cum privilego Regis 1610

Cambridgeshire

Cambridgshire deſcribed with the deviſion of the hundreds, the Townes ſituation, with the Armes of the Colleges of that famous Vniuerſiti. And alſo the Armes of all ſuch Princes and noble men as haue heertofore borne the honorable tytles & dignities of the Earldome of Cambridg.

"This province is not large, nor the air greatly to be liked, having the Fenns so spread upon her North, that they infect the air far into the rest. The soil doth differ both in air and commodities; the Fenny surcharged with waters: the South is Champion, and yieldeth Corn in abundance, with Meadow-pastures upon both sides of the River Came."

Oxfordshire

Oxfordshire deſcribed with (every?) Citie and the Armes of the Colledges of (theyre?) famous Vniuerſity. Ao. 1605.

Performed by John Speede and are to beſold in popes head alley against the Exchange by IS & GH Cum Privilegio.

Wight Island

Deſcribed by William White Gent. Augmented and publiſhed by John Speed Citizen of London.

The Isle of Man

THE ISLE OF MAN Exactly deſcribed, and into ſeveral Pariſhes diuided, with euery Towne, Village, Baye, Creke, and Riuer therein conteyned. The bordringe Coaſts wherewith it is circulated in their situations ſett, and by the Compaſe accordingly ſhewed, with their true diſtance from euery place unto this Island by a ſeuerall scale obſerued.

MAN by Caeſar called Mona, by plini Monabia, by ptol. Monoceda, and by Gildas Evbonia is an Iſland ſeated in the Ocean betwixt the kingdomes of England, Scotland and Ireland, it formerly bare the name of a kingdome, and hathbene populous and well inhabited very plentyfull of Cattell, Foule and Fyſhe, it is nowe deuided into ſeauentene pariſhes, many Villages, and defended by twoe Caſtells.

THIS SCALE Conteyneth the Miles of the Iſland, it ſelfe, and is to be meaſured according the vſuall manner

PERFORMED BY IOHN SPEED Anno. 1605

Holy Island, Garnsey, Farne Island, Iarsey

Angelsey [Wales]

Antiently called Mona. Deſcribed 1608

Radnorshire [Wales]

The Countie of RADNOR described and the shyretownes sittuatione Anno 1608.

Deſcribed by ChriStopher Saxon, Augmented and publiſhed by Iohn Speede Servant to his Majeſty.

Leinster [Ireland]

The Countie of LEINSTER with the Citie DUBLIN Deſcribed

Ulster [Ireland]

The Province of ULSTER deſcribed

The Kingdome of Scotland

[including the]
Yles of Hebrides Caled of Pliny Haebudes, of Beda Meuaniae
[and the]
Yles of Orknay

Britain

As it was devided in the tyme of the Enghſhe (?) Saxons eſpecially during their Heptarchy



{All images were spliced together from screencaps; click through to greatly enlarged versions}



The John Speed proof maps (66 in total) were printed by Jodocus Hondius in Amsterdam. {Individual prints of the maps are available for purchase from Cambridge University}

Mapping the origins of a masterpiece.

Map Forum biography of John Speed [W].

Bloch Fish

Hand-coloured engravings from 'Oekonomische Naturgeschichte der Fische Deutschlands' 1781-3 by ME Bloch. Series engravers: J.F. Hennig, L. Schmidt, A.F. Schmidt, G. Bodenehr, et al; after J.F. Hennig, Kruger junior, Plumier et al.



































































Marcus Elieser Bloch (1723-1799) was a German physician and ichthyologist, but academic prowess was anything but an inevitability in his life. He pulled himself up by his own bootstraps, as the saying goes, after an impoverished childhood left him illiterate into adulthood.

By some stroke of luck - or perhaps through artful persuasion - Bloch found a position as a teacher in a surgeon's home on the back of his scant knowledge of rabbinical texts. He made the most of the situation however, mastering German and Latin, and he began to study anatomy with the financial assistance of distant relatives. Eventually, Bloch completed a medical degree in Berlin where he subsequently worked as a physician.

Over a couple of decades, Bloch's interest in natural history increased and, in keeping with the custom of the times, he collected specimens and corresponded and shared specimens with international enthusiasts. Obviously fish was his main passion and he sent his son all over Europe collecting as many species as could be found. (The renowned collection still exists, housed at the Museum of Natural History at Humboldt University in Berlin)

Bloch was well into his fifties when his ichthyological hobby became his main academic focus. He concentrated on local fish in the beginning, publishing a couple of minor books on the subject. In about 1781-3 he began to release what would ultimately become the most important (and beautiful) study of fish published in the 18th century. It was one of the first wide-ranging ichthyology works that both provided detailed species descriptions and adhered to Linnaean principles. Although inaccuracies surfaced (particularly with non-German fish) and observations were eventually superseded, the series was generally serviceable and regarded as the standard for a century or more.

Bloch's 12-volume magnum opus -- 'Allgemeine Naturgeschichte der Fische' -- began with the 3-volume series known as 'Oeconomische Naturgeschichte der Fische Deutschlands' (the source for the images above; which specifically concentrated on German fish species). The overall series was released between 1781 and 1795 and was enormously popular. Investors helped defray the publication costs of the second half of the series by sponsoring individual illustration plates which bear their names.

The 432 hand-coloured engravings are fair attempts at reproducing the bright natural colouring of the fish and some of the illustrations were heightened with gold, silver or bronze filings to imitate the metallic sheen of scales. Bloch published a couple of other multi-volume series on fish (at least one posthumously), thereby cementing his place as one of the most important historical figures in ichthylogical science.

• The images above were sourced from 'Oeconomische Naturgeschichte der Fische Deutschlands', online at the fabulous, but sadly dormant these last couple of years, University of Strasbourg Digital Collection (the Strasbourg homepage{& new homepage} - the collection is mostly history of science and the majority of digitised works are illustrated; many appear in the BibliOdyssey archives).
• Universitätsbibliothek Heidelberg has about one quarter of the illustration plates from the overall 12-volume series, but I don't know which volumes they chose (click anything below 'Inhalt' and then 'Vorschau' for a large page of thumbnail images.
• The Internet Archive has a substantial collection of Bloch publications.
• This [PDF] illustrated overview paper from 2011 by Fiona Melhuish from Reading University provides the best background online, although it specifically deals with another of Bloch's publications : but Bloch's books appear with different titles, in varying languages, and were reassembled in larger series and the like, so there is much relevant overlap.
• Marcus Eliezer Bloch at the Jewish Encylopedia. [W]
• A number of Bloch book reprints are available from Amazon.