The term Sassanid or Sassanian refers to the
Persian dynasty
(A.D. 224-651) and last line of Persian kings
before the Arab conquest. The Sassanian era was
marked by wars against Romans, Armenians, and
Huns and by the revival of Zoroastrianism, an
ancient Persian religion founded in the 6th
Century B.C. This bronze horse reveals the fine
craftsmanship of Sassanian artisans whose work
rivals the quality of the finest Greek or Roman
bronzes. All four legs of the horse are bent
inwardly with their round, flaring hooves as it
gallops away in a furry of movement. The body
is well modeled complete with a thick, curving
tail. The horse has been bridled and wears a
thickly cushioned saddle on its back. The saddle
blanket has been decorated with a cross-
hatched pattern and lozenge-shaped saddle
bags fall on either side. Perhaps the most
attentive detail is the fact that none of the
horse’s feet touch the ground. Frozen in full
stride, the horse gallops and appears as if flying.
This fact was forgotten until 1877 when
photographer Eadweard Muybridge
demonstrated through his stop-motion
technique that when a horse runs, there is a
moment when all of the animal's feet are off the
ground, and that the feet are tucked beneath the
animal at that moment. How much more
impressive that the Sassanian artist responsible
for this horse was aware of a detail we know only
know through the creation of the camera.
- (FZ.357)
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