From Domestication to Horsemanship

Above: Pottery from: "The Horse in Ancient Greek Art" An Exhibition at The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Evans Court Gallery (February 17, 2018 - July 8, 2018)

While the Botai culture is the first recorded instance of domestication for practical use, ancient Greek warriors can be credited with the development of the first philosophies of horsemanship. Circa 350 B.C. a Corinthian military leader and student of Socrates, named Xenophon, wrote the oldest known treatise “On Horsemanship.” The treatise gives its readers details about how to evaluate a horse for purchase and the correct methods to train such a horse. Xenophon also emphasized the importance of understanding the horse's nature and advocated for gentle, systematic training rather than force or cruelty.

“What a horse does under compulsion, he does blindly, and his performance is no more beautiful than would be that of a ballet-dancer taught by whip and goad…What we need is that the horse should of his own accord exhibit his finest airs and paces at set signals…The majesty of men themselves is best discovered in the graceful handling of such animals.” -Xenophon, On Horsemanship, p.50

Horses also occupied a sacred place in Greek culture, originating in the mythology of Poseidon and giving rise to other heroes. According to the myth of Poseidon, god of the sea and creator of the horse, pegasus was born from the head of Medusa after she was slain. The taming of Pegasus is later attributed to Bellerophon (Tufts University, n.d.). This link between Poseidon and the horse adds a deeper, sacred, layer of reverence to the human-horse relationship in Greek culture. We will see this sacred aspect perpetuated in later religious traditions as well.

Above: This large medallion is the central part of a Roman floor mosaic discovered in an Autun aristocratic residence in 1830. The medallion depicts the myth of Bellerophon riding Pegasus and slaying the chimera, a monster with the body of a lion, a goat, and a snake, on a black background. The hero is about to plunge his spear into the animal's throat. This theme evokes the victory of intelligence and bravery over evil, and Bellerophon is the Greek model of an ancient hero. The same posture is later repeated in the Christian era in the iconography of Saint George (Musée Rolin).