Icelandic Horses
by Venetia Featherstone-Witty
Title
Icelandic Horses
Artist
Venetia Featherstone-Witty
Medium
Photograph - Photographs
Description
On my trip to Iceland in June 2016 I got to ride an Icelandic horse - in the rain, cold and wind on a black sand pebble beach. These horses are tough and very strong! The Icelandic horse is a breed of horse developed in Iceland. Although the horses are small, at times pony-sized, most registries for the Icelandic refer to it as a horse. Icelandic horses are long-lived and hardy. In their native country they have few diseases; Icelandic law prevents horses from being imported into the country and exported animals are not allowed to return. The Icelandic displays two gaits in addition to the typical walk, trot, and canter/gallop commonly displayed by other breeds. The only breed of horse in Iceland, they are also popular internationally, and sizable populations exist in Europe and North America. The breed is still used for traditional sheepherding work in its native country, as well as for leisure, showing, and racing.
Developed from ponies taken to Iceland by Norse settlers in the 9th and 10th centuries, the breed is mentioned in literature and historical records throughout Icelandic history; the first reference to a named horse appears in the 12th century. Horses were venerated in Norse mythology, a custom brought to Iceland by the country's earliest settlers. Selective breeding over the centuries has developed the breed into its current form. Natural selection has also played a role, as the harsh Icelandic climate eliminated many horses through cold and starvation. In the 1780s, much of the breed was wiped out in the aftermath of a volcanic eruption at Laki. The first breed society for the Icelandic horse was created in Iceland in 1904, and today the breed is represented by organizations in 19 different nations, organized under a parent association, the International Federation of Icelandic Horse Associations.
FEATURED 6/8/17 in"Images That Excite You"
FEATURED 6/8/17 in "Animal Photographs"
FEATURED 6/9/17 in "Our 4-Legged Friends"
FEATURED 6/9/17 in "First Friday Gallery"
FEATURED 6/15/17 in "FAA Pixels All Stars"
FEATURED 6/28/17 in "New FAA Uploads"
FEATURED 6/27/27 in "Your Very Best Photography"
FEATURED 7/8/17 in "All Natural Beauty Of This World"
FEATURED 7/8/17 in "No Place Like Home"
FEATURED 9/22/17 in "AAA Images"
FEATURED 11/10/17 in "The World We See"
FEATURED 1/5/18 in "500 Views - 1 Image a Day"
Uploaded
June 7th, 2017
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Viewed 1,587 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 04/26/2024 at 11:00 AM
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Comments (30)
Gary F Richards
Outstanding horse composition, lighting, shading, beautiful color and artwork! F/L voted
Christopher James
One of your peers nominated this image in the 1000 views Groups Special Features #18 promotion discussion. Please help your fellow artists by visiting and passing on the love to another artist in the the 1000 Views Group....L/F/Tw
JOHN TELFER
Venitia, Excellent detailed capture of these Icelandic Horses, love the great details and landscape. Along with the mountains in the background. Beautiful image, I have nominated this image for a Special Feature in the 1000 Views Group LF
Venetia Featherstone-Witty replied:
Thank you very much fr your kind words, John. This is one of my favorite photos. an I took it at 11pm in June so in Iceland it was still light!
Morris Finkelstein
Revisiting this fabulous photograph, Venetia! Voted your entry in Logo Contest for 4-Legged Friends! F/L
Maxine Billings
WOW, Venetia, what an awesome capture of these beauties!!! Love the soft, smooth, vibrant colors!!!
Kay Brewer
Congratulations on your lovely work reaching more than 500 views and graduating from the 200 Club! LF
Morris Finkelstein
Fabulous photograph of Icelandic horses grazing on grasslands, with great scenery, colors, perspective, and composition, Venetia! F/L
CJ Anderson
Congratulations, Venetia! Your marvelous photograph was chosen to be featured on the homepage of THE ECELECTIC EQUINE.
Mary Ann Weger
Congratulations! Your beautiful work has been featured in the Fine Art America group “FAA- Pixels All Stars”! You are invited to archive your featured image for permanent storage and for viewing on the Discussions Page—topic name: “3--OPEN--All Star Featured Archives & Thank You Thread & List of Artists”. Simply copy your image’s URL at the top of your image’s profile page, and paste it into the Discussion Page theme as noted above. Group URL: https://fineartamerica.com/groups/f-a-a--pixels-all-stars.html
Venetia Featherstone-Witty replied:
Thank you very much for the feature Mary Ann and I will add it to the archive of "FAA Pixels All Stars"
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