Chapters
When a favourite horse of Emperor Caligula, gracefully named Incitatus (Swift), was appointed senator, many pointed out his Spanish origins and the fact that his original name was Porcellus (Piglet). The benevolent lawmakers were blinded by the sight of Piglet’s golden manger, a harness studded with precious stones, and 18 servants serving the brave senator.
The emperor cared little for comments about the bumpy political path he had taken for his favourite mount. Historians argue how much influence Piglet had on the politics of the Roman Empire, but they know that it was only a part of the adoration with which the Romans treated their horses. Here is their story.
For a historian, the Roman state is what the Himalayas are for a climber. The history of the over 1,200-year-old empire continues to fascinate next generations of researchers. The Roman hippie was a specific synthesis of all cultures that were part of the multinational colossus. The Romans, whose most outstanding trait was the rapid ability to absorb the best of everything, both from enemies and conquered peoples, took advantage of it to the full. So these were influences, among others: Gallic, Numidian, Illyrian, Sarmatian, Parthian, Sassanid, Greek, Germanic, Palmerian and Hunnic techniques– of course, every technique of the above-mentioned, were adopted and adapted to Roman needs. To illustrate the multitude of styles and techniques of riding, suffice it to say that historians to this day are often unable to identify the role and manner of riding many horse units listed in official military lists. This is especially true of the late Roman ride. In this section, we will try to persistently follow the traces of Roman mounts, describe their role in combat, transport and in the sports arena. We leave the evaluation of our investigation to the Reader. Therefore, we wish you a pleasant reading and invite you to a trip to the country of Caesar and Horace, full of splendor, intrigue and wealth.
The Romans’ worship of horses is perfectly illustrated by the story of Emperor Caligula named Incitatus(initially his name was Porcellus, which means Piglet, but Caligula found the name unworthy and changed it to Incitatus – Chyży). The steed from Spain had a marble box, an ivory manger, purple rugs, pearl necklaces, around its neck, and it ate oats with flakes of gold. Moreover, Incitatus had the dignity of a senator (the mad emperor intended to promote him to the rank of consul, but did not manage to do so. At the time of his death, Incitatus lacked the 3 years required by Roman law to take the position. Caligula’s successor, Emperor Claudius, removed the horse from the senatorial state on the grounds of lack of property and permanent income). Incitatus was the owner of a crowd of slaves, he was surrounded by his own personal guards, he also had his own manor. On his behalf, guests were invited to grand orgies organized under his patronage. Emperor Caligula himself invited Incitatus to his table many times, personally offering him barley and wine from the golden goblet. As it happens with horses, he is a multidimensional and highly unknown figure. It is difficult to define exactly how much influence Senator Incitatus had on the shape of the policy of the Roman Empire. Historians are not entirely in agreement on this point…
The famous Roman poet Virgil describes the ideal horse as follows: “High neck”, “short belly”, “elongated head”, “full back, chest the heat of the muscles does not hide “,” you will recognize a noble foal by the proud expression and nervous legs “,” the spine doubled in the cross “,” the horned hoof is ringing and solid “. Pliny Secundus adds that the “chestnut and the spotted” horses were valued, while the “dun” horses were less valuable. When buying a horse, attention was paid mainly to the legs and hoof. Often, following the example of eastern peoples, the buyer demanded that the silhouette of the entire horse should be covered, revealing only the legs. This was to objectively assess the value of the steed so that the buyer would not be fooled by its beauty. A measure of the quality of the hoof, as in Greece, was the sound the hoof makes when it hits the pavement (numerosum sonitum). Many Romans attributed individual characteristics to certain horse colours, e.g. mousy – best for hunting, greyish for racing, grey and dirty chestnut for breeding.
The Romans cleaned their horses with coarse palm leather gloves, horsehair brushes, sponges, wooden knives to scrape sweat and wooden scrapers. Horses were covered with rugs at night in the stable. The mane and tail were washed with aromatic oils. They were cut with knives in a brush or trimmed on the left side so that the hair fell only to the right. Very often the horses were not cut off the mane at all, only the weaker ends were removed. Lips were also softened with oil and water. The hair in their ears was also cut. After each work, the horses were washed with exceptional care for the legs. It was thought good to stroke and pat young horses while they eat in order to establish a bond between them and man.
The main ingredients of the food were straw and barley. One of the historians of that period, Pliny, writes that the daily food ration was 15 Roman pounds. Sometimes hay and wheat were served. In the spring, it was recommended to use cereal forage, but it was advised, however, to bleed the blood of the horses during this diet. In summer, the horses were fed pure barley and released onto fresh grass for the whole day. During the winter, the horses were fed with peas to the evening meal for better digestion. Grain oats were not used. Chaff and chaff were also added to the horses.