National Palace of Sintra hosts international meeting on hunting in the Middle Ages

On October 23rd and 24th, the National Palace of Sintra will host the II Medieval Hunting Meeting: Setting up the Chase: Where and When?, organised by the Institute for Medieval Studies (IEM NOVA/FCSH) and the Network for the Environment in Medieval Usages & Societies (NEMUS), in partnership with Parques de Sintra.

This interdisciplinary reflection on medieval hunting will focus on the interaction between time and space as a determining factor in medieval hunting practices, bringing together researchers from various fields such as archaeology, biology, history, and geography. During the Middle Ages, multiple hunting areas were used, defined by the surrounding landscape — including endemic fauna and flora. At the same time, hunting practices followed natural cycles, depending on the rhythm of the seasons and the climate, and were also influenced by human activity.

Throughout history, the Sintra Hills were a privileged hunting ground, attracting the Royal Family and the nobility, who made the Palace of Sintra their residence and the setting for sumptuous banquets featuring animals captured during royal hunts. Over the two days of this meeting, participants will have the opportunity to step back in time and recall these traditions. On October 23rd, at 4:30 p.m., beside the vegetable garden in the gardens of the National Palace of Sintra, which are open to the public, there will be demonstrations of birds of prey in flight, particularly falcons. The birds will be on display throughout the day in an aviary next to the garden, and visitors will be invited to interact with the falconers from Falcões do Oeste [Falcons of the West].

Attendance at the meeting, which will be conducted in English, is free of charge, but registration is required by October 22nd via the following link: https://forms.gle/qh2k4Pb4pHUtg5UM8

The full programme and further information can be found here.