The term laurices refers to the fetus of the

rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...

(''Oryctolagus cuniculus'') prepared without evisceration and consumed as a table delicacy. The word is the plural of the Latin word laurex (variant ''laurix'', n. masc., pl. ''laurices''; English singular occasionally ''laurice''), assumed to have been borrowed from an Iberian source. The word is normally found in the plural number, since, due to their size, more than one would be served at a time. The rabbit was adopted by the Romans from

Hispania Hispania ( la, Hispānia , ; nearly identically pronounced in Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, and Italian) was the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula and its provinces. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hispania ...

, whence it spread over western Europe, as did likewise the custom of consuming laurices. As the domestication of rabbits became established, the source of laurices was extended to newborns, because it became possible to harvest them without sacrificing the breeding doe, the time of birth being able to be monitored.

Earliest historical mention

The first known mention of this

gastronomic Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between food and culture, the art of preparing and serving rich or delicate and appetizing food, the cooking styles of particular regions, and the science of good eating. One who is well versed in gastr ...

speciality is with

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...

(23—79) in his ''

Naturalis Historia The ''Natural History'' ( la, Naturalis historia) is a work by Pliny the Elder. The largest single work to have survived from the Roman Empire to the modern day, the ''Natural History'' compiles information gleaned from other ancient authors. ...

'' :

Gregory of Tours

The consumption of laurices (called ''fetus cunicolorum'') during the fast of

Lent Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke ...

is mentioned by

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (30 November 538 – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of the area that had been previously referred to as Gaul by the Romans. He was born Georgius Florenti ...

(''ca.'' 538—594) in his ''Historia Francorum'' ("History of the Franks"), Book 5.4. Earlier in the passage, Roccolen appears in conflict with Gregory of Tours himself, and Roccolen is described by Gregory as being an impious rascal. Therefore, Gregory's mention of this practice can best be interpreted as condemnation.

Myth

The common theory that

Pope Gregory I Pope Gregory I ( la, Gregorius I; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great, was the bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 to his death. He is known for instigating the first recorded large-scale mission from Rome, the Gregori ...

(540 – 604) authorized the consumption of laurices during Lent and other fasts, declaring them to be a ''marine'' species, like fish or shellfish, is false. The myth derives, in fact, from a misreading of Gregory of Tours' ''Historia Francorum'' 5.4 (quoted above) and a confusion between Gregory of Tours and Pope Gregory, two contemporary but different authors with the same name. Furthermore, this myth has also led to the idea that the rabbit was domesticated circa 600 AD, which must similarly be rejected.

Bibliography

* OSPliny the Elder. Bostock, John,

Henry Thomas Riley Henry Thomas Riley (June 1816 – 14 April 1878) was an English translator, lexicographer, and antiquary. Life Born in June 1816, he was only son of Henry Riley of Southwark, an ironmonger. He was educated at Chatham House, Ramsgate, and at Cha ...

eds. ''The Natural History'', 2nd Ed., 1855. Book VIII: "The Nature Of The Terrestrial Animals", Chapter 81(55): "The Different Species Of Hares."
Online version at Perseus
* AYPliny the Elder, ''Naturalis Historia'' (ed. Karl Friedrich Theodor Mayhoff.) Lipsiae eipzig Teubner. 1906.
Online version at Perseus
*[LEW Lewis, Charlton T. and Charles Short, ''A Latin Dictionary''. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1879.
Online version at Perseus
*[ZEU] Zeuner, Frederick Everard. ''A History of Domesticated Animals''. New York: Harper & Row. 1963.

External links

* [The Livestock Conservancy
The Livestock Conservancy: Rabbits
Classification by Pope Gregory the Great. Site accessed 2007-02-08. *[CERB
Club des Eleveurs de Races Belges de Ronquières en Belgique.
*[FAO] Lebas, F. et al. ''The Rabbit: Husbandry, Health and Production''. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Rome, 1986. Online version a

References