Ottoman Turkish horsemen - Niklas Stor

 Salvete Omnes,

summer is in its dog days - 
I corralled some woodcuts from a German artist Niklas Stor (1503-1562)  depicting the Ottoman Turkish warriors. During this period  the Ottoman empire, Hungarian kingdom and German Reich entered into almost continued warfare. 

Master Niklas' work, in the tradition of master Albrecht Durer, provides plenty of information on the Ottoman riders and their equipment. 

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. jasyr ( esir/asir - captives in captivity)

 

two camels(Bactrian & dromedary)  

& a giraffe 

enjoy

Valete

Sassanian plate from Northern Wei tomb

 Salvete omnes,

the month of January is coming to its end today. It has been a very cold month in our Northern Hemisphere. 

King hunting wild boar

perusing the Wiki Commons archives I came across this Sassanian metal plate found in the Northern Wei tomb. Which gives me a chance to share some very fine photos of the Northern Wei tomb art showing their horses, warriors, horse musicians, hunting and their heavy cavalry on caparisoned horses. 

You can listen to the Chinese History podcast to learn more about the Northern Wei ( in the comfort of your own surroundings)- an interview with prof. Scott Pearce , author of the book on the Northern Wei.  

Northern Wei fresco - detailed images of horse archers, dogs, and prey animals

Model of the Northern Wei tomb

Northern Wei fresco 

. all these Bactrian camel sculptures come from the Northern Wei tombs - long distance travel, trade and influence  across the Central Asian lands were the essential parts of the Northern Wei state.

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Nota bene, the story of Mulan (Hua Mulan) 

seems to have come  from this period (preserved in the writings of Song Dynasty), hence some researchers say that she was not really a Han Chinese but a  warrior from the northern China Sinicized (assimilated into the Han Chinese culture etc) nomadic northern peoples. 

enjoy

Valete

The fall of Seleucids and the Raise of Parthia - Nikolaus Overtoom's dissertation

 Salvete Omnes,

I enjoy reading, studying and drawing about the ancient Parthia and their history in the context of the  equestrian history of Eurasia - so a short entry today

  - the entire dissertation of dr Nikolaus Overtoom is available on the LSU website - Challenging Roman Domination: The End of Hellenistic Rule and the Rise of the Parthian State from the Third to the First Centuries BCE (2016)

You could also listen to several Parthian history presentations by dr Overtoom on Yt eg the Lecture on   Parthia,.  On the Parthian Empire.

enjoy 

Enjoy

Buffalo vel bison hunting I - bison chase by the Eastmans

 Salvete omnes,

the grey horse chasing the bison has some splendid horse tack

a quick 'lope' to frontier America, when the Eastmans, Mary and Seth, 

lived and wrote and Seth painted and drew the aboriginal people of Minnesota country, where Seth was a commanding officer at Fort Snelling, Minnesota - 1841-49.

They knew the Dakota Indians, of the Eastern division of the greater Sioux Nation, Seth already spoke the language, serving at Fort Snelling during the 1830-32 there, and  in 1831-2 he was married to a prominent Dakota family's daughter  named Stands Sacred with whom he had had a daughter Winona and thus Seth would be the grandfather of the famous doctor, pastor and writer Charles Eastman.  Upon leaving the Minnesota frontier in 1832/3 for West Point post he 'divorced' his Dakota wife. 
Mary learned to speak Dakota language and learned of the Dakota Sioux lore and customs etc. 

In 1854, while living near Washington, D.C., Mary wrote and Seth, then already a veteran officer in the US Army,  illustrated  a book titled 'Chicora and other regions of the conquerors and the conquered.'

from that book come there pages on buffalo(bison) hunt on the plains - 

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to be continued 

Valete

Quian Xuan - late Song and Yuan painter

 Salvete Omnes,

a noble horse archer 

Quian Xuan (1235-1305) - was a painter and calligrapher during the Song and Yuan dynasties of China. He grew up during the conquest of Chinese states by Chingiss Khan and later creation of the Yuan, Mongol, Dynasty.  He is known by his intricate paintings of birds, landscapes, and mixing of the late Song style and ancient Tang one.   

Liao Dynasty period painting of the famous consort

Consort Yang mounting a horse while emperor is watching. - Smithsonian has a page devoted to this artwork.

Tang emperor and his eunuchs retainers

consort being helped to mount the horse . Note the dragon on the saddle's skirt

Yang Guifei was considered one of the Four Beauties of China, and subject of many paintings and artworks in the Chinese and Japanese arts. eg this Wiki Commons page.
During the An Lushan rebellion when imperial forces were all but defeated, the Tang guard soldiers surrounding the emperor forced him to order his favorite consort to commit suicide. She died in July 756 Ad, but went on to live as the object of art and poetry and novels in the Asian history etc. 

Valete