ARAB STALLIONS BEING LED TO WATER; AND AN ARAB MARE AND FOAL IN THE DESERT BY MOONLIGHT

THERE ARE TWO DISTINCT TYPES OF HORSE, ALTHOUGH IN MANY INSTANCES THIS HAS BEEN LARGELY MODIFIED BY INTERBREEDING. THE NORTHERN, OR DUN TYPE, FROM WHICH ARE DESCENDED MOST OF THE ORDINARY HORSES OF NORTH WESTERN EUROPE, AND THE SOUTHERN, OR BARB TYPE, MORE COMMONLY KNOWN AS ARABS. DURING THE REIGN OF WILLIAM III THREE ARAB HORSES WERE INTRODUCED INTO ENGLAND, REVERED AS THEY WERE FOR SPEED AND POWER. THE MODERN THOROUGHBRED RACE-HORSE TRACES ITS LINEAGE DIRECTLY BACK THROUGH THE MALE LINE TO ONE, OR IN MANY CASES ALL, OF THESE THREE ARAB HORSES.

HARRINGTON BIRD, A LONDON PAINTER WHO EXHIBITED AT THE ROYAL ACADEMY BETWEEN 1870 AND 1893, HERE DEPICTS SOME FINE EXAMPLES OF ARAB HORSES, BOTH TAMED AND RUNNING WILD (SEE LOT 125). HE IS SKILFUL IN PORTRAYING BOTH THE POTENTIAL OF THE ANIMAL'S TAUT BODY AT REST (SEE LOT 132) AND ITS MUSCULAR STRENGTH IN MOTION (SEE LOT 133).