More falcons

Since the Middle Ages, the falcon is one of the most highly regarded animals in the world. Whoever possessed a falcon belonged to the nobility.See Jos Martens on geschiedenis.nl. The falcon is often confused with the hawk, however the falcon has “round” wings, while the hawk has “pointed” wings. Also, their wingbeats are different: where the falcon hunts constantly with the same wingbeat, the hawk alternates between short and long wingbeats (See Ford’s entry in Britannica . Nevertheless, falconry and hawking are often used as synonyms. This is also notable in ancient literature where they are not distinguished separately, because both birds symbolize high speed. See Michael Ferber for this, page 102 in A dictionary of Literary Symbols(https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/dictionary-of-literary-symbols/CAFACB5E09125B23B576BC88222BFDAC) Italian literature in fact demonstrates the prestige of falconry with the piece De arte venandi cum avibus, a handbook for falconry, written by Frederico II, King of Sicily. Besides the court of Federico II being an influence to falconry in Italy, falconry also entered Italy through the German influence and thanks to Venetian connections with falconers in the Orient. Because of this, famous Italian people started practising falconry, for example Lorenzo de’ Medici, the Doge of Venice and Cardinal Orsini.

The sacrifice of a bird was not introduced by Giovanni Boccaccio himself. Similar stories have been told for centuries.

An old Buddhistic legend tells the story of Buddha who transformed himself into a dove to be eaten by a hunter family. There are many legends wherein Buddha (or Indra) transforms into an animal being sacrificed to show his gratitude to the host family.See Boccaccio, Giovanni (curated by Vittore Branca). Decameron. Torino: Giulio Einaudi editore, 1980: 681. Vol. 2

There is another story which seems to be an antecedent of Boccaccio’s novella. In the medieval fable Guillaume au FauconWilliam the Falcon, in English there is a page that pretends to be ill. In order to recover, he demands his master’s best falcon. These stories have been a remaining source of inspiration for other authors.

The story of Federigo and his falcon wasn’t the first time Boccaccio introduced the theme of sacrificing a bird. In his Metamorfosi, the characters Bauci and Filemone decided to sacrifice their only goose to honor their guests.See Nasone, Publio Ovidio. Le Metamorfosi. 8 d.C: 611-724. Vol. VIII