Horses are among the first
animals depicted in art. Outlines of what appear to be Asiatic Wild Horses on the walls of the Chauvet Cave in France date to 30,000 BC, while the spotted horses at the Pech Merle Cave, which may be examples of an ancient breed called the Knabstrup, go back to 25,000 BC. These paintings make the ones at Lascaux from 17,000 BC seem positively contemporary—those horses are probably ancient relatives of the Tarpan, now extinct.
Though not domesticated until some 6,000 years ago, horses quickly became important assets of the nomadic peoples of Kazakhstan and Mongolia, who bred horses as beasts of burden, to transportation to ride into battle against other rival tribes, and as a source of food, from meat to milk. Wealth was largely determined by the number of horses in one’s stable, while skill at breeding and riding alike was highly prized.
By the time of the ancient Parthian, Greek, Mesopotamian, and Persian cultures, horses were firmly associated with power; in Scythian society, horses were frequently buried with their owners. No longer relegated to the walls of caves, horses now appeared in decorative terracotta or marble reliefs on palace walls, in tapestries and
rugs, within mosaics, and as bronze or stone sculptures. Bronze and terracotta were also favorite media of
Chinese,
Indian, and
Japanese artists, who also drew and printed images of horses on
scrolls, small works on paper, and
woodblock prints.
The horses in these works of art, as well as those by more recent European and American artists, carried kings, rode bravely into battle, jousted, chased foxes amid scores of hounds, and played
games, from polo to thoroughbred racing. Horses were idealized for their strength and mythologized for their supernatural powers. In the
Bible, the appearance of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse signaled the coming of the Last Judgment, while hybrid creatures called unicorns were thought to be heroic, healing creatures who could only...
Horses are among the first
animals depicted in art. Outlines of what appear to be Asiatic Wild Horses on the walls of the Chauvet Cave in France date to 30,000 BC, while the spotted horses at the Pech Merle Cave, which may be examples of an ancient breed called the Knabstrup, go back to 25,000 BC. These paintings make the ones at Lascaux from 17,000 BC seem positively contemporary—those horses are probably ancient relatives of the Tarpan, now extinct.
Though not domesticated until some 6,000 years ago, horses quickly became important assets of the nomadic peoples of Kazakhstan and Mongolia, who bred horses as beasts of burden, to transportation to ride into battle against other rival tribes, and as a source of food, from meat to milk. Wealth was largely determined by the number of horses in one’s stable, while skill at breeding and riding alike was highly prized.
By the time of the ancient Parthian, Greek, Mesopotamian, and Persian cultures, horses were firmly associated with power; in Scythian society, horses were frequently buried with their owners. No longer relegated to the walls of caves, horses now appeared in decorative terracotta or marble reliefs on palace walls, in tapestries and
rugs, within mosaics, and as bronze or stone sculptures. Bronze and terracotta were also favorite media of
Chinese,
Indian, and
Japanese artists, who also drew and printed images of horses on
scrolls, small works on paper, and
woodblock prints.
The horses in these works of art, as well as those by more recent European and American artists, carried kings, rode bravely into battle, jousted, chased foxes amid scores of hounds, and played
games, from polo to thoroughbred racing. Horses were idealized for their strength and mythologized for their supernatural powers. In the
Bible, the appearance of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse signaled the coming of the Last Judgment, while hybrid creatures called unicorns were thought to be heroic, healing creatures who could only be tamed by virgins. The myth of the centaur may have evolved from the first look non-horse-riding cultures got of men on horseback (centaurs have the body and legs of a horse plus the body, arms, and head of a man), while the winged Pegasus embodies two enduring human preoccupations, great strength and the ability to fly.
Naturally, the rich history of horses made them prime targets for popularization as objects of decorative art and even
furniture. Horses have been made into everything from
table lamps to
bookends to
salt-and-pepper shakers, and what child's room would be complete without a rocking horse?
Bottle openers with horse-head handles are common, as are horse-shaped
coin banks. Numerous manufacturers made
mantel clocks whose faces were set in carriages pulled by teams of brass horses. And horses have been used to decorate textiles from
scarves to
tablecloths.
In
jewelry, horses can be found in
pins and brooches, sometimes studded with
rhinestones, sometimes left as simple
sterling silver, often employing
modernist, abstract designs. There are horse-themed
cufflinks, horse and horseshoe
charm bracelets, and horse-head
earrings. Horses have also been known to appear on
buttons and
belt buckles, too.
For fans of
art pottery, horses and equestrian figurals have been favorites of
Staffordshire and
Meissen potteries since at least the
Victorian Era, while American firms such as
McCoy and Llardo made numerous styles of horse figurines through the mid-20th century. French glass manufacturers
Daum and
Lalique rode the horse wave, as did
Steuben and
Heisey, whose Oscar horse mold has also been used by
Imperial and
Fenton.
For contemporary horse collectors, the most recognizable horses may be the ones used in
advertising during the past two centuries. Horses have adorned the outsides of
cigar boxes,
tobacco tins, and
whiskey bottles, although they have also appeared on healthier goods such as
crate labels advertising asparagus, melons, and pears. Clydesdale horses have been the mascots of
Budweiser beer since the repeal of Prohibition, while
Mobil’s red Pegasus logo has been around almost as long.
