MS M.1044, fols. 85v–86r

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Gaston III Phœbus, Count of Foix
1331–1391

Livre de la chasse

Paris, France
ca. 1406–1407
381 x 290 mm

Bequest of Clara S. Peck, 1983

MS M. 1044
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Hunting and Slaying the Wolf
The wolf was a threat not only to sheep but other animals as well. It was also a threat to human life and, during wars, provided a service by eating dead soldiers. Thus there was little love for the wolf, and no killing or trapping method was considered too cruel. Suggestions included baiting them with morsels of meat containing needles pointed at both ends or trapping them in a noose, which kept them helplessly dangling in the air (see fols. 98 and 96 in facsimile). This miniature depicts the final moments of the chase, in which the wolf is pursued by nobles on horseback and a pack of dogs followed by men with spears. (Before this the wolf had to be baited, located, and forced out of the thicket by hounds.)

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Image courtesy of Faksimile Verlag Luzern