Tang bas relief horse

[bhchao]

Tang Taizong was an avid horse enthusiast. He played a crucial role in helping his father Li Yuan consolidate regional control into a central authority, by blending martial warfare and political maneuvering during his military campaigns against the Turks. He played the various tribes against each other politically while personally leading his cavalry on the battlefield.

As part Xianbei and growing up near the steppes, Li Shimin had an insider knowledge of cavalry warfare. He loved horses. Before he died, he ordered six bas-relief horses to be carved and placed near his tomb. Four of the stone horses are in a museum in Xian while the remaining two are in the University of Pennsylvania Art Museum. Hopefully the remaining two stone tablets can someday rejoin the other four at their home in Xian (Chang'an),

A photo of one of the two bas relief horses in Philadelphia: