FURUSIYYA 2 Volumes Art and Artifacts, Horsemanship, Arabian horse, History

Volume I: The Horse in the Art of the Near East: 244 pp. 

Volume II: Catalogue, 288 pp 

 Profusely illustrated in color.  An illustrated and well documented study on the horse in general, and Arab horse and its relation to Arab history in particular. The domestication of the horse, the horse in war, hunting, art, literature and legend, science, veterinary, and much more. It starts with some of the earliest representations of horses and chariots from he ancient city of Ur in Mesopotamia. Other early pieces include cuneiform texts on horse care from the Hittite and Assyrians period; sculpture and representations of chariots from Dynastic Egypt; the bronze bits and horse trappings from Urartu and Luristan. As well as the earliest surviving saddle and horse trappings dating to 500 B.C. from the frozen Schythian graves at Pazyryk and a head of one of the sculptured horses from the Temple of Zeus at Perganum. Other magnificent pieces include a Byzantine ivory representing a chariot race in the hippodrome at Constantinople; a silver hunting plate probably made for a Sasanian ruler in Iran; horse models and sculptures from various Central Asian cites; equestrian models, including several Benin bronzes from Africa; an alabaster stele showing a horse and camel from south Arabia, as well as recently excavated finds from other pre-Islamic sites in Saudi Arabia and Sharjah. Many of the objects are from the Islamic period. These are intended not only to illustrate themes of horsemanship, but also to show some of the great masterpieces of Islamic art. A large number of magnificent objects and manuscripts from the  museum and libraries from around the world.

 Soft cover. Condition: Covers has some wear, inside Very Good. Second Edition, 2010, David Alexander, General Editor