0050 - ... C illus S/C x lines Chinese Art. The famous bronze 'celestial' h...Back

... C illus S/C x lines Chinese Art. The famous bronze 'celestial' horse, stepping on a swallow, was excavated in 1969 at Wu - wei, Kansu, and dates from the Eastern Han dynasty of the 2nd century A.D. So different was this tall western breed introduced to China in the first century B.C. from the short legged Mongolian ponies previously known, that the horses were called 'Celestial' or 'Flying'. This is the finest known example of their portrayal, and while the position of their legs is not accurate it is closer to reality than any previous portrayal. Photo: Courtesy of the Society for Anglo-Chinese Understanding.