ANDALUSIAN HORSE

The origin of the Andalusian, or Pure Spanish horse, dates back to Palacolithic times, and does not owe one single feature or influence from outside the Iberian Peninsula.Lady Wentworth stated in "The World's Best Horses" that: "The Spanish Andalusian appears to be descended from prehistoric stock…".

This appears to be so, as far as modern dating methods can ascertain, and they assure us that the Andalusian forebears came several thousand years prior to the Barb, and the Barb thousands of years before the Arabian.

Nearly six thousand years ago, the warriors of the Iberian Peninsula had established themselves as superior horsemen. In historic times it is well documented that the Iberian cavalry had achieved fame as an effective and fearless foe, much of their success being due to their fine mounts.

Two thousand years ago, the famous Athenian cavalry leader, writer and philosopher, Xenophon, much of whose treatise on equitation is applicable today, praised the "gifted Iberian horse" and Homer also refers to them in his "Iliad", written about 1,100 B.C. Artistic impressions of the Spanish horse of that period have quite striking resemblances to the present day horse.

(Extract from Australasian Andalusian Association website)

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