So BadAncient's stuff is generally excellent, but I actually have more than a quibble with this one - the question being if elephants were given wine before battle. The main point, that the source testimony on this in Greek is very thin is fair...https://twitter.com/AncientWorldMag/status/1389938010440015876 …
So, the Arthashastra is a manual on statecraft and strategy, not on the control of elephants. It has more in common with the Book of Lord Shang than with Xenophon's On Horsemanship. Elephant handling was done by trained specialists, not by kings.
-
-
It discusses the handling of elephants from the position of a battlefield commander, not a mahout. Like chariots, kings rode *on* elephants, they did not drive them. It's been a while, but as I recall, the Arthasatra doesn't include detailed information on even basic things...
-
...like the dietary requirements of elephants (except that starving them is bad), their handling, mating cycles, their capture (except 'from the elephant forests' which, yes) or training. It's not that kind of work, so I'm not surprised it doesn't discuss inducing musth.
- Näytä vastaukset
Uusi keskustelu -
Lataaminen näyttää kestävän hetken.
Twitter saattaa olla ruuhkautunut tai ongelma on muuten hetkellinen. Yritä uudelleen tai käy Twitterin tilasivulla saadaksesi lisätietoja.