Andy Neill
Well-known member
- Joined
- Nov 26, 2001
- Posts
- 2,293
I was reading an MSNBC piece which said:
U.S. soldiers said they had blown up a huge statue of Saddam Hussein on a rearing horse with a sword in his right hand in the center of Najaf.
I thought I recalled something about the significance of the horse's position in the conventions of statuary so I looked it up and found this:
For equestrian monuments: If the horse has its four legs on the ground it means that the rider was not killed in action. In this case the rider must have his head covered and must not be holding his weapons. When the rider was wounded in a battle, the horse is depicted with one of its fore legs rose. The rider should hold his weapons in combat ready position and must have his head covered. A horse standing on its hind legs means that the rider was killed in combat. In this case the rider's head must be uncovered and the figure must be represented as if engaged in action.
With that in mind, I can only hope the sculptor of that statue was prophetic in depicting Saddam's demise in battle.
U.S. soldiers said they had blown up a huge statue of Saddam Hussein on a rearing horse with a sword in his right hand in the center of Najaf.
I thought I recalled something about the significance of the horse's position in the conventions of statuary so I looked it up and found this:
For equestrian monuments: If the horse has its four legs on the ground it means that the rider was not killed in action. In this case the rider must have his head covered and must not be holding his weapons. When the rider was wounded in a battle, the horse is depicted with one of its fore legs rose. The rider should hold his weapons in combat ready position and must have his head covered. A horse standing on its hind legs means that the rider was killed in combat. In this case the rider's head must be uncovered and the figure must be represented as if engaged in action.
With that in mind, I can only hope the sculptor of that statue was prophetic in depicting Saddam's demise in battle.
