Marwari horse

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Marwari
Udaipur divisions of Rajasthan
  • neighbouring areas of Gujarat[3]: 485 
    • Standard
    Traits
    Weight
    • Male:
      average 365 kg[2]
    • Female:
      average 340 kg[2]
    Height
    • Male:
      average 150 cm[2]
    • Female:
      average 140 cm[2]
    Colourall colours, including piebald and skewbald
    Distinguishing featuresears inward-curving, sometimes touching each other

    The Marwari or Malani

    Kathiawari breed of the Kathiawar peninsula of Gujarat,[5] with which it shares an unusual inward-curving shape of the ears. It is found in all equine colours, including piebald and skewbald. It is a hardy riding horse; it may exhibit a natural ambling gait
    .

    The

    packing. In 1995, a breed society
    was formed for the Marwari horse in India. The exportation of Marwari horses was banned for decades, but between 2000 and 2006, a small number of exports were allowed. Since 2008, visas allowing temporary travel of Marwari horses outside India have been available in small numbers. Though they are rare they are becoming more popular outside of India due to their unique looks.

    History

    Pages of an old manuscript, filled with script. Several paintings of horses are shown, including horses running free and interacting with humans
    Shalihotra manuscript pages, showing early horses

    The origins of the Marwari are obscure.

    Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak, in his Ain-i-Akbari, says that the finest horses in India were those of Kutch, and recounts a myth that an Arab ship carrying seven fine Arab horses was shipwrecked on the shore of that district;[10]: 133 [11] Kutch is in modern Gujarat, while Marwar is in Rajasthan. Abu'l-Fazl also makes clear that the Emperor Akbar had about twelve thousand horses in his court stables, and that there were constant arrivals of new horses from all parts of the Islamic world.[10]: 132  There is also the possibility of some Mongolian influence from the north.[12] The breed probably originated in northwest India on the Afghanistan border, as well as in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan, and takes its name from the Marwar region (also called the Jodhpur region) of India.[13]

    The

    Kshatriyas warrior caste.[14] When the Mughals captured northern India in the early 16th century, they brought Turkoman horses that were probably used to supplement the breeding of the Marwari. Marwaris were renowned during this period for their bravery and courage in battle, as well as their loyalty to their riders. During the late 16th century, the Rajputs of Marwar, under the leadership of Mughal emperor Akbar, formed a cavalry force over 50,000 strong.[13] The Rathores believed that the Marwari horse could only leave a battlefield under one of three conditions – victory, death, or carrying a wounded master to safety. The horses were trained to be extremely responsive in battlefield conditions, and were practised in complex riding maneuvers.[15] Over 300 years later, during the First World War, Marwar lancers under Sir Pratap Singh assisted the British.[13]

    1900s to today

    In traditional tack

    The period of

    Maharaja Gaj Singh II.[13]

    A British horsewoman named Francesca Kelly founded a group called Marwari Bloodlines in 1995, with the goal of promoting and preserving the Marwari horse around the world.[19] In 1999, Kelly and Raghuvendra Singh Dundlod, a descendant of Indian nobility, led a group that founded the Indigenous Horse Society of India (of which the Marwari Horse Society is part), a group that works with the government, breeders, and the public to promote and conserve the breed. Kelly and Dunlod also entered and won endurance races at the Indian national equestrian games, convincing the Equestrian Federation of India to sanction a national show for indigenous horses – the first in the country. The pair worked with other experts from the Indigenous Horse Society to develop the first breed standards.[20]

    The government of India had originally banned the export of indigenous horse breeds, although not polo ponies or Thoroughbreds, in 1952. This ban was partially lifted in 1999, when a small number of indigenous horses could be exported after receiving a special license.[21] Kelly imported the first Marwari horse into the United States in 2000.[20] Over the next seven years, 21 horses were exported, until, in 2006, licenses stopped being granted over concerns that native breeding populations were being threatened.[21] One of the last Marwaris to be exported was the first to be imported to Europe, in 2006, when a stallion was given to the French Living Museum of the Horse.[22] In 2008, the Indian government began granting licenses for "temporary exports" of up to one year, to allow horses to be exhibited in other countries. This was in response to breeders and the breed society, who felt they were not being allowed a fair chance to exhibit their animals.[21]

    In late 2007 plans were announced to create a

    stud book for the breed, a collaborative venture between the Marwari Horse Society of India and the Indian government.[23] A registration process was initiated in 2009, when it was announced that the Marwari Horse Society had become a government body, the only government-authorized registration society for Marwari horses. The registration process includes an evaluation of the horse against the breed standards, during which unique identification marks and physical dimensions are recorded. After the evaluation, the horse is cold branded with its registration number and photographed.[24] In late 2009 the Indian government announced that the Marwari horse, along with other Indian horse breeds, would be commemorated on a set of stamps issued by that country.[25]

    Characteristics

    The height at the

    blaze and four white socks are considered lucky.[15]

    Detail of Marwari ears

    The facial profile is straight or slightly Roman,[28] and the ears are medium-sized and curving inward so that the tips meet; also, the Marwari horse can rotate its ears 180º. The neck is arched and carried high, running into pronounced withers, with a deep chest and muscular, broad, and angular shoulders. Marwaris generally have a long back and sloping croup. The legs tend to be slender and the hooves small but well-formed. Members of the breed are hardy and easy keepers, but they can also be of tenacious and unpredictable temperaments. They are quite similar to the Kathiawari horse, another breed from India,[26] having much of the same history and physical features. The main difference between the Marwari and the Kathiawari is their original geographic origin – Marwaris are mainly from the Marwar region while Kathiawaris are from the Kathiawar peninsula. Kathiawaris have inward-slanting ears, a short back, and a straight, slender neck and are more similar to Arabians, but they are pure in breed. Kathiawaris are slightly smaller than Marwaris in general.[29]

    The Marwari horse often exhibits a natural

    ambling gait, close to a pace, called the revaal,[13] aphcal,[15] or rehwal. Hair whorls and their placement are important to breeders of Marwaris. Horses with long whorls down the neck are called devman and considered lucky, while horses with whorls below their eyes are called anusudhal and are unpopular with buyers.[30] Whorls on the fetlocks are thought to bring victory.[15] The horses are expected to have correct proportions, based on the width of a finger, said to be the equal of five grains of barley. For example, the length of the face should be between 28 and 40 fingers, and the length from the poll to the dock should be four times the length of the face.[13]

    Genetic studies

    As a direct result of indiscriminate breeding practices, as of 2001 only a few thousand purebred Marwari horses existed.

    microsatellite DNA, the Marwari was found to be the most genetically distinct breed of the five studied, and was most distant from the Manipuri; none of the breeds were found to have close genetic ties to the Thoroughbred. The Marwari was distinguishable from the other breeds in terms of both physical characteristics (mainly height) and environmental adaptability. The physical differences were attributed to differing ancestries: the Marwari horse are closely associated with the Arabian horse, while the four other breeds are supposedly descended from the Tibetan pony.[32]

    A dark brown horse ridden by a man in a red jacket and white pants, in mid-air over a jump
    Show jumping

    Uses

    The Marwari horse is a riding horse;[33] it may also be used for shows, horse safaris, sport, ceremonial & religious purposes, and during earlier days in war.[34] Marwari horses are often crossed with Thoroughbreds to produce a larger horse with more versatility. Despite the fact that the breed is indigenous to the country, cavalry units of the Indian military make little use of the horses, although they are popular in the Jodhpur and Jaipur areas of Rajasthan, India.[35] They are particularly suited to dressage, in part due to a natural tendency to perform.[36] Marwari horses are also used to play polo, sometimes playing against Thoroughbreds.[37] Within the Marwari horse breed was a strain known as the Natchni, believed by local people to be "born to dance". Decorated in silver, jewels, and bells, these horses were trained to perform complex prancing and leaping movements at many ceremonies, including weddings.[15] Although the Natchni strain is extinct today,[18] horses trained in those skills are still in demand in rural India.[15]

    References

    1. ISBN 9789251057629
      . Accessed December 2016.
    2. ^ a b c d e f Breed data sheet: Marwari / India (Horse). Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed April 2023.
    3. ^
      ISBN 9781780647944
      .
    4. ^ "Marwari horses find new home in India". The Times of India. 14 September 2006. Archived from the original on 6 May 2010. Retrieved 19 May 2009.
    5. doi:10.1016/j.livsci.2014.01.028
      (subscription required).
    6. ^
      ISBN 9780691167206
      .
    7. doi:10.1017/S2078633612000094
    8. ISBN 0751301159
      .
    9. ISBN 9781465451439
      .
    10. ^ a b Abu al-Fazl ibn Mubarak, Henry Blochmann (translator) (1873). The Ain i Akbari. Calcutta: Asiatic Society of Bengal.
    11. ISBN 978-1-59420-205-6
      .
    12. ISBN 1-56458-614-6
      .
    13. ^
      ISBN 1-56458-614-6
      .
    14. ^ "Breed Information". horsemarwari.com. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
    15. ^
      ISBN 1-58017-612-7
      .
    16. ^ a b "Marwari Horse". Horseman Magazine. 10 August 2008. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
    17. ^ Sirhindi, Manish (8 June 2008). "Reliving History on Horseback". The Tribune, Haryana Edition. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
    18. ^ a b Eveleigh, Mark (June 2009). "The Marwari Horse: Divine Horses of Rajasthan" (PDF). NagMag. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 May 2011. Retrieved 5 February 2010.
    19. ^ "Indigenous Horse Society of India". horsemarwari.com. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
    20. ^ a b Overdorf, Jason (June 2004). "Saving the Raja's Horse". Smithsonian Magazine. Archived from the original on 9 September 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2009.
    21. ^ a b c Talukdar, Rakhee Roy. "Monsieur Marwari, NRI on UK duty – if Babus won't permit others, send dilraj from france". The Telegraph (Calcutta, India). Archived from the original on 5 July 2012.
    22. ^ "Horses in Europe". horsemarwari.com. Archived from the original on 29 September 2008. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
    23. ^ Singh, Prabhjit (1 November 2007). "Stud book on 'Marwari' horses in offing". The Tribune, Bathinda Edition. Archived from the original on 24 September 2009. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
    24. ^ "Marwari horses in registration race". DNA. Diligent Media Corporation. 9 September 2009. Archived from the original on 27 February 2011. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
    25. ^ Chandra, P.B. (8 December 2009). "Marwari horse finds a place on stamp". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 13 December 2009. Retrieved 13 December 2009.
    26. ^
      ISBN 0-671-66068-3
      .
    27. ^ The Marwari Horse Breed Standard. Indigenous Horse Society of India. Accessed May 2020.
    28. ^ "Marwari Horse Breed Standard". Indigenous Horse Society of India. Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
    29. ^ "About Indian Horses". Indigenous Horse Society of India. Archived from the original on 30 December 2016. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
    30. ISBN 978-0-8061-3884-8. Archived
      from the original on 18 April 2016.
    31. ^
      S2CID 23041709
      .
    32. PMID 22444405
      .
    33. ^ Equines in India: Horses: Marwari Horse. Indian Council of Agricultural Research: National Research Centre on Equines. Archived 22 November 2015.
    34. ^ "HABITAT AND DISTRIBUTION". Marwari Horse Society. Archived from the original on 18 January 2017.
    35. ISBN 1-56458-614-6
      .
    36. ^ "Breed Characteristics". horsemarwari.com. Archived from the original on 8 April 2010. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
    37. ^ "Marwari". Breeds of Livestock. Oklahoma State University. Archived from the original on 30 December 2008. Retrieved 19 May 2009.

    Further reading

    Wikimedia Commons has media related to Marwari.
    • Kelly, Francesca & Durfee, Dale (2000). Marwari: Legend of the Indian Horse. New Delhi: Prakash Book Depot.
      ISBN 81-7234-032-X
      .      .

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