Dissertation on Birds of Prey and the Sport - the Falconry Heritage ...

century, is not spiritual, but a voluminous encyclopedic work intended as a commentary
on Aristotle's books about animals. Books 22-26 of his text, however, are written in the
naturalist vein, providing descriptions of many different animals from various sources
and also his own observations. Book 23 in this series is devoted to birds, and a solid half
of this text is reserved for discussion of hawks and falcons, from both a naturalist's and a
falconer's point of view. Along with dividing the birds of prey into species, he discusses
in depth the birds' appearance, habits, coloration, bird-calls, classification, care and
training, their preferred geographical area, and their relative usefulness for hunting. He
also gives veterinary advice. His sources are his own personal experience, along with
information he has received from consulting falconers, and the authoritative texts of the
time: an apocryphal letter from Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodothyon to Ptolemy, king
of Egypt, and treatises by Guillelmus falconarius and Gerardus falconarius. He also uses
material from his contemporary, Frederick 11.~' In total, Albertus Magnus is practical,
thorough, and knowledgeable, and he clearly appreciates the importance of falconry to
the culture of his time.
Falconry treatises are integral parts of other encyclopedic works as well, in the
thirteenth century. In addition to that of Bartholomaeus Anglicus, Brunetto Latini's
Tresor has a section on falconry, by far the most extensive description of rapacious birds
that is to be found in an encyclopedic text in the French or Italian vernacular. The
information that he provides about the birds emphasizes the perspective of their
usefulness in hunting, as is shown by his first statement: "Ostours est uns oiseaus de
proie, si come sont faucons et esperviers et autres oiseaus que l'en tient par delit a penre
40 For detailed discussion of his sources, see Robin Oggins, "Albertus Magnus on Falcons and Hawks," in
Albertus Magnus and the Sciences (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 1980), 441-462.