In the spirit of Halloween

 Salvete Omnes,

American Halloween has conquered the world, one could say - well, then some images in the spirit of Halloween.

Arabian horse

Eclipse 

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Enjoy

ps All Saints day tomorrow 

Valete

Horse going rough - lithographs from 1860s. Anton Strassgschwandtner fecit

 Salvete Omnes,

In our hemisphere the ending of October brings fog, mist and clouds with rains.. Darkness of November is around the corner. 

I corralled some equestrian European lithographs from mid-19th century. Austrian artists Anton Strassgschwandtner created these lithographs based on his own paintings or drawings? 

They mostly show riders fighting for control, losing control, horses going rogue or horse accidents . 

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enjoy

Valete

Dextrarius, equus, palfridus - Emma Herbert-Davies on Medieval Horse Types (in England)

 Salvete Omnes,

Cantigas del rey Alfonso X el Sabio manuscript- B.R. Florence Library

three weeks ago Trivent Publishing hosted Dr Emma Herbert-Davies who lectured, for about 40 min, on the dominant types of the Medieval horses in England.

Dr Herbert-Davies published an edited translation of Jordanus Rufus - On Medicine of Horses. 

During the presentation, with slides, dr Herbert-Davies presented the challenges the research into the Medieval horse, explained the absence of breeds vs abundance of types in the sources. 

She then presented the working definition where type of horse had a variety of characteristics like its role or utility, status, value & quality.

She provides the following list - 

1.Destrier - dextrarius

2.Equus

3.Rouncey

4.Great Hore - equus mangus

5.Courser

6.Palfrey - Palfridus

7.Sumpter

8.Hackney

9.Hobby

In the military context, three types of horses appear in sources - Destrier, equus, and rouncey, later equus magnus, courses

No sources describe the characteristics of  destrier, nor equus neither rouncey. And dr Herbert-Davies concludes that in the late 13th early 14th centuries destrier was the most desired combat horse for the nobility (and heroes of the medieval romances), but most knights rode equi (war horses), while sergeants & valleti -retainers - rode rounceys.

From her studies of Jordanus and Practica equorum(Anonymous English text from the period) she presented the characteristics of the good or perfect horse:

Long:

head, neck, belly

Short:

ears, fetlocks, back

Wide:

mouth, nostrils, eyes, chest, buttocks(rump), joints(shins)

And so on, I enjoyed this presentation and strongly recommend watching & studying this lecture.

enjoy

valete

Zhovkva alias Polish Zolkiew - the town, church and castle Stanislaw Zolkiewski founded

 Salvete Omnes,

Stanislaw Zolkiewski, Polish  Crown grand hetman, inherited the sizable estates from his father, also Stanislaw.

no Zolkiew images from the 1600s, but this is Karol Auer print from 1838

During his career as a statesman and solider he augmented his wealth and holding, including founding a town of Zolkiew (by the will of Stalin and Khrushchev in today's Ukraine as Zhovkva).

Collegiate Church of St. Lawrence - the Zolkiewskis family sepulcher

 

The interior of this splendorous church also originally contained two monumental paintings - battle of Klushino 1610 by Szymon Boguszowicz, and Battle of Khotyn 1673 by Altomonte. 
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Crown Grand Hetman had this castle built

Zolkiewski's castle aka zamek

. the frieze on the Collegiate Church of Saint Lawrence contains images of horsemen, including the Polish 1600s cavalrymen 

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winged hussar

Saint George 

Saint Martin & beggar 

enjoy

Valete