Field Map Lothian’s Hunt

Fox hunting in Scotland in the late 19th century.

The aristocratic sport of fox-hunting originated in England during the 16th century, when a means of pest control gradually developed into a formalized expression of medieval hierarchy. Scotland was no exception, and this pocket map was published by William Blackwood & Sons to identify hunting locations across the region of Lothian. Wooded areas (fox covers) are brightly highlighted in green, while ‘Places of Meeting’ are pinpointed with large black dots. Concentric circles emanating from Edinburgh in three-mile increments help the reader gauge distances. Railways are colored in red and reflect how modern conveniences were gradually incorporated into the hunt.

The map is undated, but I’ve found several contemporary advertisements for the piece in published volumes from the early 1870s to the early 1880s. Fox hunting with dogs was banned in Scotland by the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act of 2002. This act, passed by the Scottish Parliament, made Scotland the first part of the UK to ban traditional fox hunting.