Friedrich Gauermann - mid-XIX century Austrian peasants and their horses

 Salvete Omnes,

a quick entry: this portfolio is  full of colorful pictures of the  Alpine peasant life of the Austrian Crown lands -  Friedrich Gauermann (1807- 1862).

son of Jacob (painter from Württemberg, who eventually settled in Austrian Empire, where he died in 1843)

Friedrich's paintings: 

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and the last scene - not unlike American frontier's scene - just mountain folks trying their carbines and muskets, with a wagon in a background.

Valete

Summer is ending with .. Abraham van Calraet horses

 Salvete Omnes,

so our 2023 summer is ending - c'est la vie.
how are your horse things these days - I try going to the stables often, and enjoy the summer-sleek horses prancing in green meadows etc.

ad rem, a quick entry -
 I have been looking at some paintings by Abraham van Calraet -  a Dutch painter living during the Age of Opulence in Low Countries (always like that book by Simon Schama - The Embarrassment of Riches - some more detailed infor on the book here )

So these saddles are quite interesting - 

from the traditional large one -  look at that Paint 

 to a version, in leather most likely   - with nice -:)  grey horses 

to more peculiar saddles , some quite flat almost in the English saddle fashion - starting with this palomino steed 

these spotted horses - 

do enjoy these beautiful horses and their riders etc 

Valete

Cavalarice Or the English horseman by Markham

 Salvete Omnes,

Cavalarice - Gervase Markham's opus on horse breeding from 1616AD - in the first book there is a chapter on various stallions suitable for breeding a good English horse  - one of horse 'breeds' master Gervase  listed and described was our good Polish horse of the Old Polish period (prior to 1815AD ) . Equus Polonus in his splendor

 

Valete

Old Polish horse & tack - Certamen Equestre

 Salvete Omnes,

long time ago I posted this description of a Polish horse breed as observed by an English traveler (1737AD) -

 'These are much like the Danish horse, and are generally about the size of the Spanish Jennet, are of a middle stature, but their limbs are much better knit together, and are of a much stronger make, than the Spanish ones. This horse is in many respects, like our natural English horse, except that their head are somewhat slenderer, like the Irish hobby; but their necks and crests are raised upright, and very strong; their ears are very short and small, and their backs capable of bearing any weight; their chines [shins] are broad, their hoofs are judged to be as good as those of any horse in the world.

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They are very good for a journey, and will endure long ones, with more ease than any other horse.' 

So today I am re-posting this short description along with the images of  horses, their tack and riders' costumes from the famous XVII century Certamen Equestre collection which is  a set of prints commemorating the Swedish royal court martial festivities (see my other posts on these prints and their content via Labels) - images edited from Gallica French National library digitized collection.

enjoy

valete