Ostrich Hunt n.d.

Charles Parrocel rendered this drawing, Ostrich Hunt, with pen and brown ink, and gray wash. It is an animated scene, dominated by the central figure of an ostrich beset by hunters and their hounds. This hunting scene, with its exotic animal and dynamic action, recalls ancient Roman depictions of the venatio, or wild beast hunt, in gladiatorial games. This type of spectacle can be traced back to earlier rituals, perhaps even to prehistoric hunting ceremonies where the capture of an animal held symbolic power over the natural world. Consider the posture of the ostrich, its neck craned back, beak open in what could be a cry of defiance or pain. This echoes the Laocoön, a sculpture from antiquity where the Trojan priest and his sons writhe in agony as they are attacked by sea serpents. This gesture embodies intense suffering and struggle. Symbols such as these are continually reborn, transformed by the shifting sands of time, yet forever tethered to our collective past.