H U N T S M A N S H I P
The history of huntsmanship is as old as the mankind itself. Although tangible evidence is sporadic, it proves that the ancestors of the today humans didn’t avoid meat food. Harsh living conditions during the Ice Age forced the prehistoric man to target more the animal food, which made of him a hunter who attacks the prey using in own hand made weapons and the hunt by itself is organized in a group. During the Stone Age the man becomes a successful hunter thanks his communication abilities and the life in a group. The first weapons that the man learned to make were hand-axes, daggers and blades. Later came javelins both casting and stabbing, spears, after them emerges harpoon equipped with backward hooks that stuck in the animal’s body and supported the blood loss. They were fastened by a wire strand, thus preventing the animal from escaping. Already in the Stone Age there were used for hunting spheres made of stone and later of iron connected with a leather strap. The first missile weapon was the sling. As a big invention is considered the bow that made it possible for the hunter without a greater effort to send a deadly arrow from his hide-out without commanding attention. The bow was an invention of the today man, in Europe it was used at the end of the Ice Age for bird and reindeer hunting. It had been gradually improving thanks the craft skill, knowledge and experience. It was a predecessor of the crossbow which was, however, very fast replaced by the firearms. The arrows were also shooted from blowguns. However, in order to have a bigger effect because they stuck in the skin, they were envenomed. Already the prehistoric people knew several kinds of poisons. Although there is a very austere evidence that already the prehistoric man made and used various traps, one can assume it on the basis of the lifestyle of the people who at the present day, too, live according to the old methods of the Stone Age. During the Paleolithic Period in order to find new hunting grounds the hunters migrate from Siberia to America and from the southeast Asia to Australia. They are accompanied by the first domesticated animal – the dog. Not only the humans but also the animals, who were looking for better grazing, were migrating. They were traversing difficult tarrain, too, where they were awaited by predators. Among them also the man, who was making nets, fish-traps and traps. The neolithic people lived mostly of fishing, catching birds using lime, hunting small vertebrates and invertebrates. Hunting big animals, particularly carnivores, was rendered to sovereigns and the military suite. At the end of the Stone Age the hunters dug out various pit-falls that were used for catching bears and wolfes or they fenced certain regions with various trap constructions and trap areas. Dogs of various kinds took part in each hunt during this time period. Neolithic weapons are improved inventions of earlier times: knives, daggers, javelins, spears, slings and bows. The basic material is still stone worked by smoothing and drilling. An important part in the hunt took along with the dogs horses, birds of prey but sporadicly also other beasts. The abilities of the animals were used for tracing and killing the prey. The hunting weapons hadn’t almost changed during the ancient history. Just their quality had improved mainly due to the use of metals. For the hunting served javelins, spears and daggers. A new weapon was the sword that was used for hunting only rarely. The bowes had been used until the Middle Ages. The casting weapons had lost their importance. A typical feature of hunting in the ancient history is using tamed animals. Horses were used during the hunt first in the eastern part of Europe, in the rest of the area were helpful the dog and the birds of prey. The antique authors capture the gods, the hunt goddesses, thanks which the methods of the hunting, used weapons and handling the caught prey were preserved for us. During the ancient history the hunt gradually changes from providing food and dangerous animals protection to entertainment, sport and ceremonial events. The protection of animals didn’t exist yet at those times. During Middle Ages hunting was forbidden for the lieges, they could only catch birds using lime. The kings and the dukes decided about the hunting privileges and determined hunting areas that were administered mostly by nobles. From the 9th century a special status is created who for the first time has the obligation to care for forests and animals. From the 10th century those animals were specified that could be hunted only by kings or emperors. Hunting stopped to be a means of livehood and is becoming a way of entertainment and a ceremonial issue. In the 13th century unifying the hunting law affected the soil tenancy policies. In the 16th century the huntsmanship began to be restricted due to the needs of agriculture. The animals started to be devided into deer and the small hunting animals, the notion harmful animals emerges. During the renaissance the hunting right is given to monasteries and towns, most of all to the royal ones. At the beginning of the modern times the hunting soil rents emerge. From the 15th century the building of hunting facilities, game preserves, pheasantries and big hunting constructions begins. The hunters start to catch the animals by their hounding into nets or water. An important role during the hunt is played by trained hunting dogs and birds of prey. The hunting moral is declining, the hunt often edns by tormenting and headless killing of the animals. The hunting moral starts to form in the 17th century. In the 19th century the huntsmanship eventually focuses on breeding, increasing the quality and comprehensive wildlife care. A negative action can be considered the introduction of alien animal species such as letting out American mink in various parts of Europe. Success was reached in breeding the pheasant in central Europe or the white-tailed deer in Finland. The first animal species that comes from the Mediterranean to Slovakia is in the 13th century the European rabbit. Also the fallow deer comes to Europe, in Slovakia they occur in the 15th century. In the 19th century moufflon comes to Slovakia. Gradually aurochs (urus) and European bison become extinct in the open, the populations of wolf, bear, lynx and chamois decrease. Rational care for the wildlife, regulation of their numbers, increasing their quality became necessary with onset of the modern times, most of all by deforesting of the 100% forested area of Europe down to 30%, drying up marshlands and wetlands and by regulating rivers. The main goal became the breeding activity. Today nature is not able to cope by itself with civilization run. At the present time the man has to act in such a manner that enables him to preserve possibly the most of the natural values when at the same time the resources in the country are intensively used. Falconry. Its origin is dates back to about 4000 years ago in Anatolia. It had gradually extended also to Europe. To Slovakia it comes with the invasion of Huns. Falsonry is the art of hunting with trained birds of pray. The hunt is often organized under the assistance of a dog without using firearms. Its boom took place in Middle Ages when the trained bird of prey itself was considered as a kind of prestige mainly for the king and the nobility. Only the king could carry the falcon hunting, the count the peregrine falcon and the servant the wind-hover. The birds of prey are divided into two basic groups:
Birds of prey of Slovakia
Explanatory notes:
Bibliography
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