07-23-2017, 09:11 PM
Sorry to disagree with you on this one, Nathan.
The only way to posture yourself on a horse and have your leg joints in such a position is to ride backwards. Even the sword's angle shows he is backwards. The swords carried in a normal (facing to the left) position are hanging at 70 to 80 degrees, as seen on all the other plates. On this plate, the sword hangs at about 100 degrees-- backwards. I ride horses a couple of days a week, and there is no way an equestrian can place himself in this stance except by riding backward.
Humor is transcultural, and I believe the Sassanian king commissioned this piece as an inside court joke... one that we can never fully know.
The only way to posture yourself on a horse and have your leg joints in such a position is to ride backwards. Even the sword's angle shows he is backwards. The swords carried in a normal (facing to the left) position are hanging at 70 to 80 degrees, as seen on all the other plates. On this plate, the sword hangs at about 100 degrees-- backwards. I ride horses a couple of days a week, and there is no way an equestrian can place himself in this stance except by riding backward.
Humor is transcultural, and I believe the Sassanian king commissioned this piece as an inside court joke... one that we can never fully know.
Alan J. Campbell
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb