At 10:55 AM 24/12/99 -0500, James Mathews wrote:
>From: <a href="/post/novaroma?protectID=045232113165042200148200112241225012177026038196249130152150" >jmath669642reng@--------</a> (James Mathe--------/font>
>
>Salve, Che;
>
>One of the most exciting hunts that people of the equestrian class and
>above would undertake would be hunting boar and / or bear with a boar
>spear. They used horses and dogs to find the quarry and the person(s)
>who actually did the killing would attack the animal with a heavy boar
>spear, having a heavy leaf-shaped blade and a cross-piece just below it
>to hold the animal at bay when a strike had been made. The trick,
>however, was to be quick enough to make a straight and killing stab blow
>before the Boar or Bear could savage you. Happy Hunting!!!!
>
>Vale, Respectfully;
>Marcus Minucius Audens
>
>Fair Winds and Following Seas!!!
Marcus Minucius,
Salve and Thank you.
I have read about hunts like this - most notably from T H White's epic -
The Sword in the Stone. Come to think of it David Eddings described a
similar hunt in the Belgariad.
While I agree that it's an exciting way to hunt, I don't think it's useful
to me from a plotting point of view.
See, I'll let you into a little secret. What I'm looking for here is an
ambiguous hunting accident, something which could have been accidental, or
which could have been murder.
In fact what I'm after is something like a modern shooting accident - where
the victim was shot because he was mistaken for a deer. Thus action at a
distance weapons like a bow and arrow are favored for my purposes.
I mean, otherwise it becomes a bit too incriminating... can you imagine
standing up in court saying "I thought the deceased was a boar, so I ran
him through on my boar spear till he was dead?" It all starts to look a bit
too suspicious. It's not deniable enough.
By making it some kind of a shooting accident I keep the possibilities
open. Hell, maybe it even was a REAL accident. It's _possible_ after all...
So anyway I'm looking more for ways the ancients hunted with bows. I prefer
it to be on horseback too - or at least like you say - riding then
dismounting for the kill. That way I figure it's at least slightly probable
that my heroine might be involved in the hunt. She - and other noble ladies
- might ride in the hunt in the same way women ride in fox hunts today.
Or perhaps they accompany the hunt as a party to join in some kind of post
hunt picnic or BBQ? :)
Perhaps that's not very culturally correct, but at least I feel I can make
a case for it - try and make it convincing to those who don't think about
it too deeply. Whereas somehow I don't think they'd invite girls along on a
hunt on foot. Too difficult to chaperone, young ladies should never be seen
to "sweat", too dangerous, and anyway I somehow can't quite see her
handling a boar spear like that.... It just doesn't feel right.
Alternatively she could just come across the hunt and the accident while
out riding, but that's a co-incidence, and co-incidences are very bad
plotting, novel wise. Better to have her there for a reason.
I'm rambling here, aren't I?
As I see it my plot requirements fairly rigidly determine the form my hunt
scene must take. What I'm really hoping for is some lead that perhaps this
type of hunting might have actually happened in some place at some time so
I can look for sources to mine for details. I somehow suspect it's all
going to end up reading rather like an English fox hunt whatever I do, but,
well they say God is in the details.
Say, what kind of riding gear did they wear in antiquity? Women if they
rode at all rode astride didn't they? The side saddle is a recent
invention? What did they wear?
Um, Cheers!
Che
You have been flirting with Che Monro - The infamous Internet Flirt!
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> I have read about hunts like this - most notably
> from T H White's epic -
> The Sword in the Stone. Come to think of it David
> Eddings described a
> similar hunt in the Belgariad.
>
> While I agree that it's an exciting way to hunt, I
> don't think it's useful
> to me from a plotting point of view.
>
> See, I'll let you into a little secret. What I'm
> looking for here is an
> ambiguous hunting accident, something which could
> have been accidental, or
> which could have been murder.
>
> In fact what I'm after is something like a modern
> shooting accident - where
> the victim was shot because he was mistaken for a
> deer. Thus action at a
> distance weapons like a bow and arrow are favored
> for my purposes.
>
This link will take you to the account by Peter of
Blois of the death of King William Rufus, son of the
Conqueror, who was killed in by an arrow shot by
Walter Tirel, in a hunting "accident". Immediately
following this "accident" Henry of Blois, Rufus'
brother, instead of arresting Tirel (who was on his
horse next to him), immediately rode off to Winchester
(then the capital of England) and seized the Treasury
and had himself crowned as Henry I.
<a href="http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/blois1.html" target="_top" >http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/blois1.html</a>
L. Licinius Varro Murena
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