New Book from Cheiron publishers - Rewriting equestrian history series

 Salvete Omnes,

last Sunday of this September 2026, also we have entered into the season of Autumn - Thanksgiving coming in two months.

ad rem, I was looking at the Trivent Publishing website for new Cheiron issue, and there they announced a new collection of articles on the European Medieval horses and their types: Backing the Right Horse: Types of Equids in Medieval and Later Europe.  Two articles - the Introduction and Defining the English Hackney - are 'libre' or available for download to read and study.

On this blog I have written plenty of posts on the medieval horses, mostly in the Medieval art, from destrier/dextrarius to jennet, rouncey (all purpose horse), hackney & sumpter (pack horse)- starting with this post on the dextrarius apertus of 2010..

Outright, I disagree with the position taken on breeding and breeds by Anastasija Ropa, one the editors, in the Introduction (page 11),  not only because  I read works by Juan Carlos Altamirano on the 'invention and breeding' of the  Spanish horse of king Felipe II.

In the past exchanges are had some disagreements on steppe and ancient Iranian etc horse history with on of the authors, namely Jurg Glassman. But in science and research informed disagreements just can  lead to more research and goodness - :) .

well, perhaps I get to read more of these articles, and so will you, dear fellow traveler. 

Valete

E-codices Illustrated Chronicle by Diebold Schilling of Lucerne

Salvete Omnes,
quick post:
e-codices portal allows for viewing, downloading and manipulating this extraordinary book from circa 1513AD, from Luzern (Lucerne), Swiss Confederation (today Switzerland) - Chronicle by Diebold Schilling of Lucerne.
Presented to the city of Luzern by its author Diebold Schilling the Younger (although clearly there were two painters doing the illuminations) they say that the chronicle remains unfinished. (I have not tried to read it at all).
This chronicle starts with the battle of Sempach and ends right before the coming of Reformation.

I perused the folio yesterday - more than 600 pages, over half of them with illuminations, and corralled for you and I some images that in my opinion contain so,me interesting images of saddles (including a saddle for driving ), horse tack, various horse types, mules and pack driving etc. This is but an entry into the rich iconographic treasure this chronicle is for many a student of late Medieval Central Europe.
 
 

 
 









 
nota bene the chronicle contains many images of tents, chivalry combat, combat, rapine and pillaging, traveling, farming and architecture. The illuminators show various types of arms, variety of armour, and coats of arms of the period.

eg tents




Valete!

Les Grandes Chroniques de France II

Salvete Omnes,
back to blogging from a little hiatus  - :)
Medieval manuscript painting, very beautiful as usual,  is back,

three young women appear to be riding side-saddles, their mounts are palfreys that have been bitted with a curb-bit

and we are back in the XIV century Les Grandes Chroniques de France,continuing from my  last post.
This time I am sharing with you more images of tack and riding technique - details of the page illuminations*

the length of the dress skirts on the grey horse-mounted rider seems to indicate that this is a woman, so perhaps she is riding a side saddle

A Royal female personage is riding astride and is carrying a baby, the bushes hide horses front so we don't know if it is a pacing horse

Palfreys and hunting dogs, horses appear not to be shod

the small horse seems to be used as a sumpter or pack horse, but it has been bitted with a curb-bit,so perhaps a rouncey?

clearly a team of carriage animals - royal personage is being carried in a basterna(litter)

the basterna drivers-riders use but a whip or stick while instead of a full bridle they use a rope halter or a version of hackamore

enjoy

Valete!

*each image has a title after its manuscript page number