Horses and Donkeys on Coins

[RG]

Hiranyakas of Karnataka (1st century BC), Lead Unit,  obv. a horse standing to right, an earth-like pot below its mouth and a Shrivatsa on its back, rev. a six arched hill to left and tree in railing to right with river below (Mitch K&A 134)

[<k>]

Mongolia, 750 tugrik, 1976.  Horses.

[Figleaf]

Not that it matters much, but they are more likely to be ponies, the traditional mounts of the Mongols, who used them for fast communications, as food, as a provider of hot drinks (they'd drink the blood of a live animal), as a source of leather and as a store of wealth.

Horses would not have lasted long in the mountains.

Peter

[<k>]

The data says the horse is meant to be Przewalski's horse.

Przewalski's horse is stockily built in comparison to domesticated horses, with shorter legs. Typical height is about 12–14 hands (48–56 inches, 122–142 cm), length is about 2.1 m (6 ft 11 in). They weigh around 300 kilograms (660 lb). The coat is generally dun in color with pangaré features, varying from dark brown around the mane (which stands erect) to pale brown on the flanks and yellowish-white on the belly and around the muzzle. The legs of Przewalski's horse are often faintly striped, also typical of primitive markings.[23] The tail is about 90 cm (35.43 in) long, with a longer dock and shorter hair than seen in domesticated horses.

The hooves of Przewalski's horse are longer in the back and have significantly thicker sole horns than feral horses. This is beneficial, as it improves the performance of the hooves.

The Przewalski's horse has 66 chromosomes, compared to 64 in all other horse species.

[Figleaf]

I was thinking of this animal. Wiki says that it is not a pony. So there.

Peter

[<k>]

Horse play.

Top row: Slovenia, Norway.

2nd row: Poland, Poland.

3rd row: Ireland, Ireland.

[Figleaf]

Horses are dominating all other animals in human history. Early on, they were tools of war, therefore symbols of royalty. A large number of ancient coins feature horses. For the purposes of this thread, I will skip the chariots and people on horseback, covered in a separate thread. A holdover of ancient and medieval times is that different horse races developed in different areas, becoming a symbol of that area. Examples shown in this thread are the Slovenian Lippizaners, the Hanoverian Westphalian horse, the Norwegian fjord horse, the Polish Konik and the Mongolian war pony.

The horse on the Irish "barnyard" series is somewhat, but not completely in the same category. Irish horse breeders, raisers and traders were proverbial in England and Britain. This might have something to do with low wages in Ireland, making for relatively cheap horses. However, there is to my knowledge no specific horse race connected to Ireland.

Horses appealed to the imagination. They are seen as energetic, beautiful and symbols of freedom, especially from the laws of nature. Ancient Greeks equipped it with wings and called it Pegasus. His medieval successor is Bayard, provided with supernatural qualities that differ from one country to another. He ought to be on a coin.

A knight needed a horse that could carry him plus his heavy armour and weapons into battle, the destrier. These strong animals were also perfect to serve farmers as long as tractors hadn't been invented. The difference between workhorses and riding horses is best spotted near the hoofs, where the legs of workhorses are noticeably sturdier and often more hairy. None of the coins in this thread show a typical work horse, though the Uruguayan coin was probably meant to show a workhorse.

Long, the horse was a major source of power of all kinds, even for coin-making machines. When first steam, then fossil fuels took over, horses stood for sport and sometimes wealth. In Arab countries they still have that role, which explains why they are on the coins of Algeria, Mali and Turkey shown in this thread.

That leaves the horse's head on the Greek coin. I don't see an obvious reason why it's there, but it may be the same reason as why there is a horse in the Chinese zodiac: a horse is good company, kind, beautiful and intelligent. Exactly what a wealthy old man seeks as companion

Peter

[<k>]

Why do modern men wear trousers? Answer: because of the horse.

[brg5658]

It has been quite a long time since I have posted here (over 10 year?!).  Time goes too fast.

I have gone back through this thread and updated my previous posts that were showing the Photobucket versions of images with their big watermark.  The greed of Photobucket really ruined so many online forums.  Anyway, those are now updated to new pointers.

Below are a few (of the many) new Horse coins I have acquired since 2013. 

[Figleaf]

Welcome back. Nice Stuttgarter Schauthaler you got there. I read the legend as "Wohl gerathend jugend macht freude" - Well-advised (?) youth brings joy. Not sure what that alludes to, but the foal in the background is likely to be an illustration of the concept. The horse in the foreground is the Württemberger from the coat of arms of Stuttgart.

The racing horse on the US medal is named George M. Patchen (1849-1864). His dad was Cassius Clay, who wasn't a boxer.

Your third and fifth piece are jumping Westphalians, the logo of Brunswick, its branches and successors.

I cannot determine the horse on your fourth piece as its owner had a vast stable.

Peter