Salve,
today I found on Wikipedia this French artist - André Castaigne, and in 'his' Wikipedia Commons gallery there was an image of the most famous horse of the Antiquity - Bucephalus, and his most famous rider, Alexander the Great.
From this edition of Quintus Curtius Rufus ''Historiae Alexandri Magni'' comes 'A supplement to Q. Curtius Rufus' (for the first 2 books are lost) and there we have a following story of the meeting between Alexander and his four-legged friend.
***
THE TAMING OF BUCEPHALUS.
*
Suplement to Quintus Curtius
Rufus: Book I, ch. IV (vol. I. London 1809)
The young prince astonished his
father and the court, by his dexterity in managing the horse
Bucephalus, a name given to the animal from his being marked with the
figure of an ox's head. Thessaly was then famous for its breed of
fine horses, yet none of that country could be compared to Bucephalus
for beauty or vigor;
Philonicus, a Pharsalian, considering the noble
animal to deserve an illustrious master, brought him to Philip, and
offered to sell him for sixteen talents. When the parties had reached
a plain where the horse's speed and temper were to be tried; and one
of the king's grooms attempted to mount him, the animal, refusing to
be touched, reared and plunged violently; and his fierceness made
each of the officers and servants who approached to mount him,
relinquish the attempt.
Philip regarding so wild and unmanageable an
animal as useless, desired that he might be led away. Alexander,
however, on hearing this order, cried out: "What an excellent
horse are we "going to lose, for want of address and boldness to
mount him!" The king at first considered this exclamation to
proceed from juvenile rashness; but on Alexander's insisting that it
was practicable to ride the horse, permitted him to make the
experiment, on condition that he should forfeit the price demanded
for it if he failed.
The young prince, exulting,
advanced to Bucephalus,and seized his bridle; he had observed that
the animal had started at the motion of his own shadow, he therefore
turned his head toward the sun. Still the horse's fury is not much
abated; Alexander strokes his mane, and speaks to him in a soothing
voice. Still the horse foams with rage; but the prince, having gently
thrown aside his cloak, vaults into the saddle. Bucephalus, unused to
obey, plunges, rears, strikes up his hind-feet, tosses his neck and
head, and struggles to overcome the controul of the bit, in order
that he may dart away ungoverned. Alexander relaxes the forward rein,
at the same moment spurring the horse, and with cheering tones
animating him to exert all his swiftness. After flying over a long
space, the wearied animal showed an inclination to stop; the prince,
again spurring him, kept him at his full speed till his spirit was
entirely subdued. After which, he returned with the horse gentle and
tractable.
When the prince alighted, his
father, embracing him with tears of joy and kissing him, said, "My
son, seek out a larger" empire, for Macedon is too small "for
so vast a spirit."
Bucephalus ever afterwards obeyed
Alexander with uniform submission, while he maintained his original
fierceness towards other persons. The noble animal accompanied his
master through successive labours and dangers, till he was killed in
the battle against Porus.
***
(this account was taken from Plutarch, Life of Alexander,
6, vol. VII)
ps
explanation about the supplement as can be found in the volume's preface:
*original spelling and grammar*
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