tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post1694382335506136509..comments2024-03-09T11:34:22.175+00:00Comments on The History Girls: God took a handful of the South Wind… by Katherine RobertsMary Hoffmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06241989732624913706noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-7142140335690419572011-07-15T21:21:50.646+01:002011-07-15T21:21:50.646+01:00Hello pj. Bankers and miners... hmmm... I suspect ...Hello pj. Bankers and miners... hmmm... I suspect the bankers would think themselves superior to most other beasties, even if the miners have secret caves full of gold!<br /><br />Great to know there are two generations of fans in your house, and how interesting to be doing a PhD that is horse and archaeology based. I must apologise for my unicorn-muse, who thinks digging things up is boring. He likes your centaur, though.Katherinehttp://www.katherineroberts.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-58027893653185971912011-07-12T11:40:12.333+01:002011-07-12T11:40:12.333+01:00Sorry - didn't really say that right, about th...Sorry - didn't really say that right, about the Prz and arab. What I meant to say is I think it's better simply to think of them as similar beasties in different situations, like bankers and miners. Neither is really superior to the other. They've both got their problems and advantages.<br /><br />I realise, I'm in danger of getting tedious. The PhD is horse- and archaeology-oriented and I'm afraid you become a bit obsessed. So I'll just stop with a bit of horse and fantasy trivia that you might find of interest or amusement...<br /><br />The centaur - a creature fused from man and horse and one of those odd and tricksy words. Nothing of the horse (or man, directly) is contained in that word. And modern re-users have many times taken the 'taur' and added it to other words to indicate other horse hybrids. Though 'taur' means bull and cen means 'goad' or perhaps 'whip.' Centaur could probably be best translated today to mean 'cowboy'.<br /><br />best<br />pj crossAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-20640876287885588362011-07-12T11:17:40.553+01:002011-07-12T11:17:40.553+01:00Wow. Well, first thanks to Michelle Lovric and ...Wow. Well, first thanks to Michelle Lovric and 'book of human skin' for introducing me to this site...and Katherine Langrish for the book rec -- going down to the local library postie hastie. What can I say...history, dubious medical practices, skinning, trolls, horses, magic, mystery...better than fresh roast crickets dipped in honey and a sore temptation over writing my PhD transfer report.<br /><br />Soo...horses for a reasonably interesting scholarly tome you might like: KELEKNA, P. 2009. - The horse in human history. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. I wasn't surprised about the bible 'problem' given that the horse is a northern eurasian animal and took a while to get to the southern med., whereas donkey and onagers belong to that area. I think it a bit unfair to compare przessies to arabs. That's a bit like comparing ... no, I'll get myself in trouble there...we'll stay with horses...pit ponies to thoroughbreds. They've both had their own different inbreeding environments which you can see in many species, particularly those effected by human manipulation. I'd certainly be the first to agree that mythic/mystic discussions of the origins of the horse and its relationship with us are often more appealingly worded. There's some excellent similar quotes from the Mongol/Altaic traditions. But I must object to archaeology not being considered conducive to a fantasy muse... oh, it is, in so many ways and in both directions.<br /><br />I do love your time-line! There are 2 generations of fans of your books in our house, with the younger a Katherine...so another Kat for your collection.<br /><br />pj cross<br /><br />p.s. I'm afraid I'm behind in the blogging thing, so don't know the proper profile...hopefully this works.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-17921371457929003242011-07-06T20:05:53.416+01:002011-07-06T20:05:53.416+01:00Four! Don't forget catdownunder... sorry there...Four! Don't forget catdownunder... sorry there were no cats among all those horses.<br /><br />And here's a question I don't know the answer to:<br />What is the first mention of a cat in the Bible? (not a lion... that's cheating!)Katherinehttp://www.katherineroberts.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-69164580917672917092011-07-06T19:35:44.411+01:002011-07-06T19:35:44.411+01:00By the way, three K/Catherines posting comments......By the way, three K/Catherines posting comments...!Katherine Langrishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-39412184454372524002011-07-06T19:33:40.460+01:002011-07-06T19:33:40.460+01:00Oh wow, I want to read this! Le Cadre Noir was pa...Oh wow, I want to read this! Le Cadre Noir was part of my dream world as a horse-mad little girl - along with the Lippizaners!<br /><br />And Katherine, you win the prize, hands down, for the most beautiful title yet on the History Girls!Katherine Langrishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-42254811601879388032011-07-06T17:23:31.467+01:002011-07-06T17:23:31.467+01:00Yes I know Jojo's family. Her dad still lives ...Yes I know Jojo's family. Her dad still lives round the corner, and I know that she kept her horse behind Hackney town hall! Small world! xcCatherine Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14610226884546830879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-43551968854141827392011-07-06T16:48:31.076+01:002011-07-06T16:48:31.076+01:00Catherine - Riding on London Fields reminds me of ...Catherine - Riding on London Fields reminds me of a great adult horse book I read recently... THE HORSE DANCER by Jojo Moyes.<br /><br />A girl keeps her horse under an old railway arch, and when it is sold to pay off debts she sets out on an epic ride from central London to the historic riding school Le Cadre Noir in France, where her grandfather used to perform the "airs above ground". There are gypsy trotting races held on the dual carriagways, and a mad midnight chase across London...<br /><br />The book is a romance involving the adult characters who care for the girl, but horses are at its heart, and history people might be interested in the Cadre Noir http://www.cadrenoir.fr/en/indexKatherinehttp://www.katherineroberts.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-65105381795389194922011-07-06T15:39:56.375+01:002011-07-06T15:39:56.375+01:00Until fairly recently - twenty years or so ago - t...Until fairly recently - twenty years or so ago - there were plenty of horses in London. You would see kids riding in London Fields or Victoria Park. Tower Hamlets even had a council bark chip riding area tucked in between an estate in Stepney. I learnt driving from one of the last Spitalfields draymen and would have loved to have a pony and trap instead of a car. <br />Absolutely everywhere has been built on and there is no free space anymore. Which is sadder for all of us.Catherine Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14610226884546830879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-61998457459101090692011-07-06T15:38:58.624+01:002011-07-06T15:38:58.624+01:00Thanks for my gold star, Katherine, and for pointi...Thanks for my gold star, Katherine, and for pointing me in the direction of Susan Price's priceless blog about the thousand natural shocks that horse-riding is heir to. I did a few days on a dude ranch in Arizona last November, (research of course), and my ribs were stiff for three months after! Ouch!Caroline Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07249424644829463560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-15366175149678470772011-07-06T13:16:42.046+01:002011-07-06T13:16:42.046+01:00Caroline, you DO get a gold star! And a bit later ...Caroline, you DO get a gold star! And a bit later in Genesis 49:17 Joseph's father Jacob mentions the first ridden horse in his last words to his sons, when he compares Dan to a snake at the side of the road "that strikes the horse's heel so its rider is thrown off backwards". So clearly Jacob's family were familiar with the concept of a horse and rider (Having met the Ishmaelites, maybe?) <br /><br />Yes, Adele, there are lots of fabulous horses in the Greek myths... which also end up in some of my books!<br /><br />Thank you, Mary... sadly "I am the Great Horse" has just gone out of print in the UK, but it is still in print in the US.<br /><br />Thanks, Kath - yes, I can recommend Susan Price's fabulous Sterkarm post about riding for research. I didn't need to do this, having worked in horseracing before becoming an author. (I used to ride three horses a day, six days a week, sometimes on the gallops - muck them out, groom them, take them to the races, plait their manes, get kicked by them, fall off them, love them, curse them, and cry when they fell and had to be put down... quite enough research!)Katherinehttp://www.katherineroberts.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-68404537102906245642011-07-06T11:24:53.502+01:002011-07-06T11:24:53.502+01:00(or is it spelled 'rieving'?)(or is it spelled 'rieving'?)Katherine Langrishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-42484534428309620852011-07-06T11:24:12.897+01:002011-07-06T11:24:12.897+01:00Wonderful, poetic post, Katherine! And Caroline, ...Wonderful, poetic post, Katherine! And Caroline, <br />Susan Price recently wrote a great piece on her blog about suffering in the interests of historical research as she took a riding course to get a better insight into the reiving Sterkarm clan... http://susanpricesblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/riding-for-sterkarms.htmlKatherine Langrishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-7080608148665750012011-07-06T10:56:13.994+01:002011-07-06T10:56:13.994+01:00And now please could you do the same for us cats?
...And now please could you do the same for us cats?<br />:-)catdownunderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06959328192182156574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-20065631407430771612011-07-06T10:22:59.647+01:002011-07-06T10:22:59.647+01:00yes, thanks, Caroline, for letting the rest of us ...yes, thanks, Caroline, for letting the rest of us off the hook!<br /><br />And thanks to Katherine for what I knew would be a fascinating post. I have a deep respect and admiration for horses (I used to ride as a young teenager) but am rather afraid of them.<br /><br />So I appreciate their beauty from a distance now.<br /><br />And I am The Great Horse will always be one one my favourite books. (Glad to think there woudl be plenty of horses in Arthur's time!)Mary Hoffmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06241989732624913706noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-24181998195453620352011-07-06T10:05:57.116+01:002011-07-06T10:05:57.116+01:00Please mentally delete at least two of the 'et...Please mentally delete at least two of the 'etcs' above!adelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15826710558292792068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-81057335707190902182011-07-06T10:05:23.019+01:002011-07-06T10:05:23.019+01:00Well done Kath for a truly fascinating post. I was...Well done Kath for a truly fascinating post. I was going to cudgel my brain about Biblical horses so I'm grateful for Caroline's comment. Lots of horses in Greek myths etc. Phoebus Apollo etc and the Horses of the Sun. Also all over Homer, naturally. Hector's body being pulled along behind Achilles' chariot etc. I sat on a horse once when I was about 11 and was so terrified that I've never gone near one since...but I love the IDEA of them! Thank goodness for books...and Westerns.adelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15826710558292792068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-12840130670003078812011-07-06T10:02:20.386+01:002011-07-06T10:02:20.386+01:00I know the answer: the first mention of horses in ...I know the answer: the first mention of horses in the Bible is Genesis 47:17, where Joseph's brothers trade livestock for grain. Do I get a gold star? lol. BTW, both my periods, the Romans and the Wild West are horse powered, but I cannot get on with horses. So I'd love a blog about how you do practical research with them!Caroline Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07249424644829463560noreply@blogger.com