UNITED KINGDOM: Impressive collection of horse artefacts is featured in a temporary exhibition at London's British Museum as a Diamond Jubilee gift to Britain's Queen Elizabeth from Saudi Arabia

Record ID: 838537

  • Title: UNITED KINGDOM: Impressive collection of horse artefacts is featured in a temporary exhibition at London's British Museum as a Diamond Jubilee gift to Britain's Queen Elizabeth from Saudi Arabia
  • Date: 28th May 2012
  • Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (RECENT) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF BRITISH MUSEUM IN LONDON POSTER READING IN ENGLISH: "THE HORSE FROM ARABIA TO ROYAL ASCOT" PRINCE FAISAL BIN ABDULLAH BIN MOHAMMED AL SAUD, SAUDI EDUCATION MINISTER AND CHAIRMAN OF THE SAUDI EQUESTRIAN FUND, ARRIVING AT THE MUSEUM FOR EXHIBITION OPENING PRINCE FAISAL ENTERING EXHIBITION HALL VARIOUS OF PRINCE FAISAL BEING SHOWN AROUND THE EXHIBITION BY CURATOR DR JOHN CURTIS, KEEPER OF SPECIAL MIDDLE EAST PROJECTS AT THE BRITISH MUSEUM (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SAUDI EDUCATION MINISTER AND CHAIRMAN OF THE SAUDI EQUESTRIAN FUND, PRINCE FAISAL BIN ABDULLAH BIN MOHAMMED AL SAUD, SAYING: "Without a doubt, the exhibit speaks about civilisation and culture and history, but this history is still lived today. The role of the horse has of course changed, but the horse was always a message of love and peace and harmony, a message of civilisation and culture. It looks back to the past but also reflects on the present and on our role in horsemanship." VARIOUS OF PRINCE FAISAL BEING SHOWN AROUND THE EXHIBITION BY CURTIS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SAUDI EDUCATION MINISTER AND CHAIRMAN OF THE SAUDI EQUESTRIAN FUND, PRINCE FAISAL BIN ABDULLAH BIN MOHAMMED AL SAUD, SAYING: "The horse speaks about history, and history is a connection between two civilisations, the Arab civilisation and the British civilisation, or the Western civilisation as a whole. As you know, all (Arabian) horses descend from the Arab peninsula, from three original horses, which now play a role in racing and jumping horses. We are looking at history which goes back thousands of years, and I hope this exhibit makes it clear to people that we're not speaking of a mere one or two or three hundred years, we're speaking of a civilisation that spans thousands of years, and that brings us humans together, with the horse as our common denominator." POSTER FOR THE "HORSES IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD" SECTION / DRAWING OF A MAN ON HORSE VARIOUS OF HORSE AND SOLDIERS IN ARMOUR VARIOUS OF BOX DECORATED WITH AN INLAID FRIEZE SHOWING HORSES IN A PROCESSION (SOUNDBITE) (English) EXHIBITION CURATOR AND KEEPER OF SPECIAL MIDDLE EAST PROJECTS AT THE BRITISH MUSEUM, DR JOHN CURTIS, SAYING: "Thoroughbred horses today actually derive from one or more of three Arabian sires, and their names are the Godolphin Arabian, the Darley Arabian and the Byerley Turk. And every racehorse nowadays, every pedigree thoroughbred racehorse, has an ancestry stretching back to one or more of those three stallions." VARIOUS OF ISLAMIC VASE DEPICTING A HUNTING SCENE DISPLAY CABINET CONTAINING VARIOUS ISLAMIC CERAMICS DECORATED WITH HORSES CLOSE-UP OF A CARVED RELIEF OF THREE HORSES CARVED RELIEF NEXT TO VIDEO SCREEN SHOWING A HORSE (SOUNDBITE) (English) EXHIBITION CURATOR AND KEEPER OF SPECIAL MIDDLE EAST PROJECTS AT THE BRITISH MUSEUM, DR JOHN CURTIS, SAYING: "The world of racing was definitely very hugely influenced by the introduction of the Arabian horse, and there is no doubt that the breeding of Arabian horses with native English and Irish mares led to faster horses -- the horses that we now call Thoroughbreds. They're much faster than ordinary horses." PRINCE FAISAL SPEAKING IN FRONT OF A LARGE PAINTING OF LATE SAUDI KING ABDUL AZIZ IBN SAUD, THE FIRST KING OF MODERN-DAY SAUDI ARABIA, ON A HORSE CLOSE-UP OF PAINTING OF KING ABDUL AZIZ IBN SAUD ON A HORSE CONTEMPORARY PAINTING OF AN ARAB HORSE SHAPED BY ARABIC LETTERS VARIOUS OF ARTEFACTS IN THE ISLAMIC SECTION OF THE EXHIBITION VARIOUS OF ABBAS PASHA MANUSCRIPT (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DEPUTY SUPERVISOR GENERAL OF KING ABDULAZIZ PUBLIC LIBRARY, DR ABDUL KAREEM A. AL-ZAID, SAYING: "We have many records of the history of the Arabian horse and its passage out of the Arab peninsula and out of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the rest of the world. One of these records is the Abbas Pasha Manuscript, written during the middle of the nineteenth century, which provided a detailed description of the Arabian horse and its genealogy. These horses -- which were moved to Egypt and then after about a hundred years many of them were moved to the United Kingdom -- did much to further our understanding of the history of the Arabian horse and its genealogy, types and behaviour." VARIOUS OF ARTEFACTS DEPICTING HORSES AT EXHIBITION
  • Embargoed: 12th June 2012 13:00
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  • Location: United Kingdom
  • City:
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Topics: International Relations,Arts,Politics,Royalty
  • Reuters ID: LVADXT0ZUO6EY9YFNGM74HE9GDTT
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  • Story Text: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is offering an unusual but appropriate gift to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in honour of her upcoming Diamond Jubilee.
    The present comes in the from of an exhibition entitled "The Horse: From Arabia to Royal Ascot", which includes paintings, photographs, sculptures and other precious objects that are closely connected to the history of Arabian horse.
    The temporary exhibition goes on display from May 24 to September 30 at The British Museum in central London, home to a large number of rare and priceless artefacts.
    Treasures have been brought over from Saudi Arabia for the event, and the Queen -- who is patron of the exhibition -- has lent items from her own collection which have rarely been seen in public before.
    Prince Faisal bin Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Saud, who is Saudi Arabia's Education Minister and Chairman of the Saudi Equestrian Fund, attended the exhibition opening and received a tour from the keeper of the museum's Special Middle Easter projects, Dr. John Curtis.
    "Without a doubt, the exhibit speaks about civilisation and culture and history, but this history is still lived today. The role of the horse has of course changed, but the horse was always a message of love and peace and harmony, a message of civilisation and culture. It looks back to the past but also reflects on the present and on our role in horsemanship," the Prince said to reporters.
    Objects in the exhibition range from ancient to modern and include depictions of the horse throughout human history, and the horse's representation in art, mythology and literature across time and cultures.
    "The horse speaks about history, and history is a connection between two civilisations, the Arab civilisation and the British civilisation, or the Western civilisation as a whole. As you know, all (Arabian) horses descend from the Arab peninsula, from three original horses, which now play a role in racing and jumping horses. We are looking at history which goes back thousands of years, and I hope this exhibit makes it clear to people that we're not speaking of a mere one or two or three hundred years, we're speaking of a civilisation that spans thousands of years, and that brings us human together with the horse as a common denominator," Prince Faisal added.
    Focusing on two breeds -- the Arabian horse, prized in the desert for their spirit and stamina, and the Thoroughbred, often used in horse racing -- visitors can learn about the major contribution the horse which originated from the Arabian peninsula has made to modern horse racing.
    "Thoroughbred horses today actually derive from one or more of three Arabian sires, and their names are the Godolphin Arabian, the Darley Arabian and the Byerley Turk. And every racehorse nowadays, every pedigree thoroughbred racehorse, has an ancestry stretching back to one or more of those three stallions," explained Curtis, the exhibition curator.
    And thanks to earlier breeding with Arabians, many modern horses now achieve the high speeds that add thrills to every race.
    "The world of racing was definitely very hugely influenced by the introduction of the Arabian horse, and there is no doubt that the breeding of Arabian horses with native English and Irish mares led to faster horses -- the horses that we now call Thoroughbreds. They're much faster than ordinary horses," said Curtis.
    Among the loans from the King Abdul Aziz public Library in Riyadh is the precious and fascinating Abbas pasha manuscript -- the primary source of information about the lineage of purebred Arabian horses acquired by Abbas pasha, the Viceroy of Egypt.
    "We have many records of the history of the Arabian horse and its passage out of the Arab peninsula and out of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the rest of the world. One of these records is the Abbas Pasha Manuscript, written during the middle of the nineteenth century, which provided a detailed description of the Arabian horse and its genealogy. These horses -- which were moved to Egypt and then after about a hundred years many of them were moved to the United Kingdom -- did much to further our understanding of the history of the Arabian horse and its genealogy, types and behaviour," said Dr. Abdul Kareem A. Al-Zaid, Deputy Supervisor General of King Abdulaziz Public Library.
    As well as being used extensively in battle in the Arab peninsula and surrounding region, horses were central to hunting. Elaborate trappings and ornaments pay homage to this proud animal which encouraged man to explore. Exquisite Arabic, Persian, Turkish and Mughal miniature paintings all attest to the pivotal role of the horse in the Islamic World from 7th century onwards.
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