Hunting Kings

Nimrod, the builder of cities from Babel to Calah, was the first “mighty man” on earth, a “mighty hunter before the Lord.” So were other Near Eastern, North African, Far Eastern, European, and New World kings. They hunted everything from lions to guanacos, on four of six continents, from the beginni...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cross-cultural research 2008-08, Vol.42 (3), p.270-289
Main Author: Betzig, Laura
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Cultural history
Cultural studies
Domestic animals
Europe
Evolution
Evolutionary psychology
Foraging
Foraging behavior
History
Human development
Human ecology
Human evolution
Hunting
Kings
Meat
Military exercises
Money
Paleoanthropology
Royalty
Social history
Specialists
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Summary:Nimrod, the builder of cities from Babel to Calah, was the first “mighty man” on earth, a “mighty hunter before the Lord.” So were other Near Eastern, North African, Far Eastern, European, and New World kings. They hunted everything from lions to guanacos, on four of six continents, from the beginning to the end of recorded time. But why? Hunting provided meat, and perhaps military exercise; but most kings subsisted on domesticated animals and plants, and delegated their wars to specialists. Besides, chasing animals cost money and time, and more than a few kings were killed or maimed in the act of bringing down game. The costs seem to outweigh the benefits. Much about human history seems to have been adaptive. Royal hunts do not. Hunting was the human adaptation on the savannah for hundreds of thousands of years. But it seems to be a vestige most kings can't shake.
ISSN:1069-3971
1552-3578
DOI:10.1177/1069397108319596