Ancient DNA analysis indicates the first English lions originated from North Africa
Although the Royal Menagerie and its animals are known from documentary records, few physical re- mains survive (O’Regan et al., 2005). Amongst the rare exceptions are two lion skulls that were recovered from the moat of the Tower of London during excava- tions in 1936-1937. These skulls were recently radio- carbon-dated to AD1280-1385 and AD1420-1480.
The archaeological record of domesticated and tamed birds in Sweden
This paper is based on a review of approximately 520 sites with subfossil bird remains in Sweden (ERICSON & TYRBERG in press). This comprises essentially all published sites plus a majority of the sites where the avian remains have been determined but not yet published.
Cryptozoology in the Medieval and Modern Worlds
Albertus Magnus’s thirteenth-century work, De animalibus, a lengthy compilation based on Aristotle and on a handful of commentators, is as close as the Middle Ages comes to a systematic natural history in our understanding of the term.
“Mediterranean Falconry as a Cross-Cultural Bridge: Christian – Muslim Hunting Encounters”
Among the spectacular Eastern hunting techniques which could become the object of interest and envy of the Europeans, one easily adapted to the natural conditions of Europe was undoubtedly the falconry. In fact, it became not only a great fancy of medieval and renaissance Europe, but also a kind of cross-cultural bridge across ideological gaps.