The Medici Giraffe and Other Tales of Exotic Animals and Power

by Marina Belozerskaya

A fascinating exploration, spanning two thousand years, of the central role exotic animals have played in war, diplomacy, and the pomp of rulers and luminaries.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Animals, Nature, Travel, Natural History, World History

414 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Marina Belozerskaya was born in Moscow, USSR, and was an award-winning teacher at Harvard, Tufts, and Boston Universities. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband, a curator at the J.Paul Getty Museum, and her own exotic animal, a vizsla named Audrey.

Reviews

[Alicia Aringdale · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I struggled to enjoy this book in some parts (It is hard to read about the abusive way many of the animals and native people were treated) overall I liked the glimpse it gave me of the entwined history of human power and exotic animals and how our changing attitudes have brought about good and bad for all species.

[Hectaizani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't be fooled by the title, this book is not filled with cute stories featuring fluffy animals. Instead it is a scholarly treatise in which the author explores the role of exotic animals in international politics from ancient times to the modern day. The animals appear in the stories but more as backdrops than as main characters, even the titular Medici giraffe receives only a few paragraphs.

Marina Belozerskaya has chosen seven such instances and devoted a chapter to each. Beginning in Alexandria, Egypt we learn about elephants as war machines. From there, Ancient Rome where exotic animals are used for entertainment in the arenas. The more exotic the animal the better it is received by the crowds. Then comes the Medicis and their giraffe, and how it (and other animals) turned their family from merchants into nobility. Next stop, the New World and the Aztecs where the kings kept extensive private zoos - that included albino humans among the exhibits. The next chapter details the menagerie of Rudolf II, a strange and eccentric king who often ran out of money to feed his wild cats, yet still gave them free run of the palace grounds. There is also the story of the Malmaison collection, where Empress Josephine (wife of Napoleon) kept her collection, including her favorite black swans, the descendants of which can still be seen today. Animal welfare advocate William Randolph Hearst's ranch at San Simeon where he kept herds of exotic hoofed stock roaming freely to the delight of the guests. And the final chapter details the giant pandas given to First Lady Pat Nixon by Chairman Mao Zedong as a diplomatic gift.

The author hopes that by telling the stories, it will show that the way we perceive and treat animals illuminates our own values, concerns and aspirations. And that by pondering these relationships, we may discover something about ourselves. Altogether an erudite and well-polished window into the world of animals in politics, this book should interest both history buffs and animal lovers alike.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exotic animals as tools of diplomacy did not start with giant pandas. Belozerskaya delves back into the days of Alexander the Great to look at the various ways highly valued species (war elephants) or individual animals of particular charm (the titular giraffe) have influenced history. This was an interesting history book and mostly seemed well researched but somehow the author appears to have a phobia about emus of all things. She makes them sound like the most dangerous species ever to prowl a private menagerie. She also hit a pet peeve of mine, listing the number of "animal" species in a collection and then adding the number of birds as well. Now I know that recently evidence has lumped the birds into the same class as reptiles but they are now and always have been animals.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

hodge podge of personalities from various periods in history who acquired menageries of exotic beasts for variety of reasons. interesting but lacks coherent theme, more often about social history/autobiographical with passing accounts of actual beasts/animals

[Lizzy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the idea of this book, but I found the history too detailed. Was fascinated when she talked about the role the animals actually played, but the rest of it read too much like a history book.

[Liam · Rating 5 out of 5]

"As a coda, trainers led one large white bear -- either a Thracian variety or an albino from Syria -- fourteen leopards, nine cheetahs, four caracals, and two marvels: a giraffe (an animal unknown even to Aristotle), and two-horned white Ethiopian rhinoceros. Both of these strange beasts had been shipped from Meroe, and they made an indelible impression on the onlookers. The Jewish scholars translating the Torah at the Museum included the giraffe in Deuteronomy 14 among the beasts that can be safely eaten by Jews. The animal does not appear in the non-Greek version of the text." (44-5)

"The Mexica did not grow beards, or only very thin ones, and they cut their hair short and were loose , open clothes. White skin was so rare among them that those who possessed it were collected in the emperor's zoo." (137)

"One could well understand the excitement of the Dutchmen -- tired of rancid meat and stale, maggot-eaten biscuits -- joyfully plucking the bizarre birds from underfoot and savoring their fresh meat, even as they tried to puzzle out what these creatures were. A mixture of scientific perplexity and gastronomic fixation pervades all Dutch accounts of the dodo." (201)

"As troublesome as some of the animals were, no one was allowed to interfere with them. Even Winston Churchill was held up for more than an hour by a stubborn, inquisitive giraffe that refused to get out of his way." (351)

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some popular history books meticulously walk readers through a limited series of events. Others are a loose assembly of historical narratives with a common theme. This is the latter and an excellent example of the type. Throughout history, humans have used possession of rare and exotic animals to create an image of power for themselves. Using examples from several periods of history, Belozerskaya focuses on how animals have been used by humans for political and social purposes. The writing is engaging and while the stories are brief and can’t really d justice to the complex time periods of their settings, the author uses good sources and careful explanation to weave historical information with human interest. A fun and informative read.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well written and interesting history. My only critique is that the author fails to take some of the ancient source material with a grain of salt. Other than that, I quite enjoyed this fascinating read. Obviously it’s not cute stories about animals, read the cover, it’s animals and power. It’s a compilation of history (some of the of the reviews were so silly that I felt compelled to state the obvious).

[Mindy Greiling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written book about the not-always-pretty role of animals in the lives of the rich and powerful, but not one I enjoyed. The author rightly drew parallels between the treatment of animals and powerless people.

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting subject, but Belozerskaya is perhaps too thorough.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating and compelling tales of exotic animals and the world famous leaders obsessed with collecting them. Excellent research. Spans from 300 BC to mid 20th century.

[Liam Ostermann]

Review and rating to follow

[Adam Ramirez · Rating 2 out of 5]

I could not finish this book; it got too dense with history and I was not prepared for that. It felt more like a college history book at several points.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Belozerskaya looks at world history through the lens of the part animals played in the lives of historic figures. She works her way chronologically from Ptolemaic Egypt to 20th century America, touching on various famous people in different times and places and their use of animals as symbols, weapons, entertainment, and more. She gets sidetracked more often than not by people and politics, but when she actually remembers to talk about animals, it’s an interesting new take on human history.

Chapter 1 – Elephants – How elephants were part of the military conquests of Alexander the Great and how they helped set up the beginning of the Ptolemaic dynasty. A lot of elephants died in battle – I get the impression they were just as terrified as the people they were stomping on. Poor elephants! But the search for more elephants actually lead to a surprisingly amount of commerce, culture, literature and art in the early Ptolemaic kingdom. Fun fact I learned: giraffe meat was considered kosher by Alexandrian Jews.

Chapter 2 – “Circus” animals – The role of the animal entertainments in the Roman Empire. Here Belozerskaya goes on far too long with her full mini biography of General Pompey – his life is interesting, but animals aren’t touched on for most of it. Mostly we just learn that Pompey was good at war but bad at politics (typical), and his attempts to use animals to help his political career didn’t go so well. (Again – those poor elephants!) The both physical and symbolic use of animal fights were interesting – but they shouldn’t have been crammed in at the end of the chapter, and I would have liked more about the science and mechanics of how animals were used in the arena.

Chapter 3 – the titular Giraffe – At this point we jump ahead to the 15th century get a history of the Medici family and the myriad politics of the Renaissance. We briefly jump back to ancient Rome to get more on Julius Caesar and why getting a giraffe to Italy was such a big deal, and then we get a LOT of history on the interconnecting Italian, French, Turkish, and Egyptian politics and commerce of the era to explain how and why a giraffe was brought to the Medici mansion.

Chapter 4 – Old World v. New World – And then the author really loses her audience as she goes on and on about the clash of the Old World and New World, mostly focusing on Aztecs and Spaniards, but occasionally throwing in other Europeans and Native Americans, and how each viewed the other as not quite human. She once in a while talks about each side being both fascinated and scared by each other’s animals – but not anywhere close to the amount of time she should have spent on them, giving the alleged theme of the book.

Chapter 5 – a Royal Menagerie – A very boring chapter about the glum Rudolf II who amassed a private collection of plants and animals from all over the world, including dodos, and studied the natural sciences as a way to avoid dealing with people and doing any political work. Spoiler alert! His brother overthrows him to much rejoicing from people who wanted an actually functioning government.

Chapter 6 – Australian animals in France – Josephine and Napoleon Bonaparte wanted France to be known for Science, and went to great lengths to establish national collections of plants and animals, sending out expeditions to study the natural world (as well as conquer it). We get a lot of backstory about a scientific voyage to Australia where almost everything goes wrong, but they still managed to bring back quite a lot of live specimens, and for a brief period, before everything goes wrong, there was an impressive collection of Australian animals being studied and admired in Napoleonic France.

Chapter 7 – Hearst’s Zoo – This chapter is a not-so-condensed biography of William Randolph Hearst, and the author clearly wants to put him on the analytic couch and do a psychological deep dive into what drove him to such a mania of collecting. Hearst annoys me, so I skimmed this chapter.

Epilogue – Pandas – An examination of the exchange of pandas from China to the US and how they were/are used as political and environmental symbols and I didn’t read this chapter too closely because by this point I was just done with this book.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since the beginning of time, exotic animals have been used as powerful diplomatic tools, representing the wealth and prestige of their masters. Political gifts of animals such as the strong and intelligent elephant, have long been instrumental in brokering peace and aligning nations as allies. In The Medici Giraffe, Maria Belozerskaya takes us on a fascinating journey through the past, focusing on the exotic animals that have been used throughout history as weapons of war, and the symbols of prosperity and man’s dominion over all living things.

Beginning in 275 BC Alexandria, Belozerskaya takes the reader on a grand expedition using seven major periods of history as jumping off points –

•Ptolemy’s elephants and the first ancient arms race;

•the early Roman games at the Circus Maximus, featuring the brutal slaying of thousands of exotic animals;

•the use of the “Medici giraffe” as a political instrument to build the power of Prince Lorenzo the Magnificent, and enhance the position of the entire Medici family;

•New World animals and human oddities from Montezuma’s menageries as a symbol the conquests of Cortes;

•King Rudolf II and his unsurpassed collection of specimens of natural history from around the globe, used as an escape from his political woes;

•the Australian black swans of Josephine Bonaparte, as pawns in her lifelong attempt to acquire status and influence;

•and the private menagerie of William Randolph Hearst, used to alleviate his massive insecurities and the need to prove himself.

The Medici Giraffe ends with an epilogue from modern history: the story of giant pandas Hsing-Hsing and Ling-Ling, given as a gift from China to the United States during the Nixon administration, serving as animal ambassadors for their wild relatives, and symbolizing endangered animals all over the world and the conservation movement.

The Medici Giraffe covers all manner of animals: from lions, tigers, and bears, to tapirs, kangaroos, dodos and of course the giraffe. Exploring the critical roles animals have played in the history of civilization, Belozerskaya gives us a well-researched and academic account of animals and their many applications within the realm of international politics.

I would recommend The Medici Giraffe not only to animal lovers, but also to readers who enjoy politics, and history buffs, who would like to look at these stories of the past through new eyes. Although the extensive detail Belozerskaya provides can be a little dry at times, if you focus in on, and read just one of the seven sections at a time, you’ll find The Medici Giraffe to be informative and highly entertaining, and the kind of book that stays with you long after you’ve put it down.

[Lisa Burdette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not a literature expert, therefore can't adequately defend my reasoning. I simply enjoyed the work.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is as much a collection of obscure history as stories about animals. Ms Belozerskaya highlights eight different powerful people of history, tells their histories and how exotic animals played an important role in further establishing their authority or demonstrating it. As such, each chapter is a broader history on the life of each person to give the full setting of how exotic animals played this role.

I generally have to force myself to read non-fiction, but I found this a highly readable and very interesting non-fiction book. I even opted to read another chapter of it vs a fiction book several times in the past week. (Those who know me can attest that is quite a compliment to the book.) It flowed well, and many of the histories focused on people or aspects of people/time periods that are often not the focus of study in typical history classes or books. I feel like I learned a lot. There was only one time when I caught an error (the author mentioned that one of the famous people was given a certain number of "pineapple trees" as a gift...but pineapples grow on ground plants, not trees), and I felt like on the whole it was well researched with inclusion of primary sources.

Notes on content: There were minimal if any language issues that I noticed. A couple of the historic figures had or were mistresses and the author states this as a fact. No sexual details beyond that. There are frequently wars and battles mentioned (as several of the people focused on lived in turbulent times). The chapter on the Aztecs has the most gory details when talking about their religious sacrificial rituals and the way the conquistadors butchered them. Most other chapters are less violent.

[Joelendil · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book's subtitle tells you everything you need to know about its subject matter: "...tales of exotic animals and power." The situations discussed range from the early Ptolemaic Greek Empire through modern diplomatic relations between the US and China. I found the book as a whole interesting, if a bit wandering. In her desire to provide the proper background for understanding each situation, the author sometimes goes much further back in history and into much more detail than is strictly necessary (especially in the sections on Rome, Renaissance era Florence, and the Holy Roman Empire). This didn't bother me because I love reading any historical tidbits that an author cares to dole out, but some readers might find it annoying.

I appreciated that the author avoided taking a radical animal-rights stance at any point in the book. She mostly presented historical facts on how people (especially rich and powerful people) thought of and interacted with exotic animals at various points in history. Sometimes this included pointing out the cruelty or foolishness in how certain animals were treated, but she never lost the focus on presenting history rather than militantly advancing a personal agenda. There were a few times (especially in the "Medici Giraffe" section) where I felt she was overstating the importance of the animal(s) in question, but any historian has a tendency to overemphasize their pet topic.

Overall: an interesting tour of the impact of exotic animals in 8 different times and places.

[Max Renn · Rating 4 out of 5]

If Marina Belozerskaya occasionally wanders astray from her announced intention, it is easy to forgive. For this book moves along so effortlessly and pleasurably anecdotal, one doesnt really mind that we never really explore too deeply the relationships of exotic animals to power. Indeed what really is there to say on the subject after stating the obvious.

Instead, keep your hands inside the tram at all times as we embark on a tour through the marvelous, lovely and occasionally savage (on the part of the humans not the animals) zoo of history.

Stops include Ancient Rome and Alexandria, Medici Florence, a Hapsburg castle and a Hearst castle, Montezuma's paradise and Josephine's Malmaison. Your tour guide is most pleasant and knowledgeable, evoking and making one mourn for the lost age of the great salon hostesses.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Medici Giraffe" is a visual and sensual journey back in time. I was captivated by the author's vivid, colorful, even wistful, descriptions throughout the book. I found it intriguing to see how the collection of rare animals, flora and fauna have symbolized power and prestige since the days of antiquity to present times. This book gave me great insight into rarely discussed or taught aspects of important historical events and what it was like in royal courts from Montezuma to King Rudolf II to Bonaparte (Josephine that is). The image of a giraffe eating out of the hands of noble ladies at their primo piano level windows as it waltzed through the streets of Medici Florence will forever linger in my mind. This is a must read for animal lovers, history buffs and leaders.

[Kevin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing, because it’s not at all what I expected or what it seems to bill itself as. I was expecting more about animals and how they’ve been used to cement or prop up people in power. Instead, this is a collection of somewhat interesting stories about people in power, who just happen to have some kind of connection to animals, in most cases, very peripheral. For instance, Hearst and his menagerie--what did that have to do with his position? Nothing, really, as far as I could tell from this. Finally, in the epilogue, when she discusses the uses of pandas in US/China diplomacy, did she seem to make that connection.

[Lenka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ovo je knjiga za sve dobi. Otkriva i slikovito prikazuje interesantan običaj darivanja egzotičnih životinja vladarima, bogatim trgovcima, mecenama i razmenu istih između pripadnika najvišeg ekonomsko životnog staleža, nekada. Prati ovaj običaj i fascinacije vezane za njega još od samih početaka (verovatno, da li uopšte možemo znati precizno od kada ovako nešto postoji i kada je tačno utkano u istoriju običaja), a kao najstrastveniju potragu prikazuje opsesiju firentinskog mecene, trgovca Kozima Medičija. Izuzetno pitko delo koje priča priču o upotrebi životinja u diplomatiji, koje mogu čitati "svi od 7-77" ( ne baš od 7).

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting look at the lives (and, unfortunately, deaths) of particular animals on certain powerful figures in history. Each chapter focuses on a particular person (the chapters on Josephine Bonaparte and Rudolph II were personal favorties) and how they used animals to create a better situation for themselves--either personally or politically--through the wonder of nature. There are many surprising historical factoids and, about midway through, some good discussion on the field of natural history.

[Meri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Using seven biographical portraits of prominent figures throughout history, this book portrays our timeless awe of exotic creatures. The title is a little off, as more time is spent describing the lives of those who sought and collected exotic creatures than their animals. Nonetheless, its delightful descriptions of everything from ancient Alexandria to William Randolph Hearst's castle on the Pacific coast made this book a joy to read.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really interesting (and historically educational) read. Looking at specific people throughout history, right up to current (via the epilogue) from the perspective of how animals helped them further their political power or give them the appearance of being more powerful.

The author does a good job of providing the whole context for her story snapshots, so that if you are not already knowledgeable about that time, you learn and can fully understand the events taking place.

[Alex Shrugged · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Medici Giraffe" is a history book with a focus on the animals surrounding certain events in history. I liked it but I didn't read it entirely. I was looking for information for research and other people were waiting for the book at the library. Nevertheless, I read enough of it to satisfy myself that it was well written with an interesting perspective. I was happy with the book. If I pick it up again I'll say more.

[Monika Ingram · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am enjoying the impact animals have had on the conquest and development of the world.

I finished it! This was one that I picked up and read a few pages at a time, and really enjoyed it. I had heard a thing or two about certain incidents described in the book, but I there was so much in here that I didn't know.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an interesting overview of the roles of animals in history. If you have any interest in animals or history, this would be a good book to look into- the stories themselves are interesting and not too bogged down with facts, but they include just enough information to feel like you've learned something after reading it.

[Helena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. I'm not done with it yet. I've been reading it for about six months now, and it's my special treat book. Each story is so well researched, and alive. Really a wonderful history.

[Nick Black]

whoa this looks awesome! (via http://www.thesmartset.com/article/ar... from aldaily.com). Currently, all my pets are stuffed whales, but I'd one day like a big ol' tortoise or a komodo dragon or something.