Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi floor painting with hunting scene

[Druzhina]

Khorasanian Horse Archer, 8th century
A horse archer in an Umayyad floor painting, Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi c.724–43AD[/u]

A reconstruction of the Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi floor painting with musicians and hunting scene
A Khorasanian Horse Archer in Armies of the Dark Ages by Ian Heath, based on the Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi floor painting.

Mirror site:
A horse archer in an Umayyad floor painting, Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi c.724–43AD

Ian Heath proposes that the Arab cavalry based in Khorasan adopted horse-archery from the steppe cultures and that this is an example.  Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi is in Jordan.

Druzhina
Illustrations of Costume and Soldiers

[Azadan Januspar]

Thanks for sharing. It is very evident from the art form that they tried to imitate Sassanid hunting scenes with late Sassanid costume, with a headband and a horse adorned in Iranian fashion. As for horse-archery, being one of the major homelands of the Parthian aristocracy, that makes sense as the Parthians were known particularly for that. I am wondering, however, why Ian Heath assumed that the horse archer should be from Khurasan?

[Druzhina]

Sept 30, 2017 10:15:04 GMT 3 Azadan Januspar said:

Thanks for sharing. It is very evident from the art form that they tried to imitate Sassanid hunting scenes with late Sassanid costume, with a headband and a horse adorned in Iranian fashion. As for horse-archery, being one of the major homelands of the Parthian aristocracy, that makes sense as the Parthians were known particularly for that. I am wondering, however, why Ian Heath assumed that the horse archer should be from Khurasan?

Ian Heath was looking for an illustration to match descriptions of Khurasanians of the period and perhaps wishful-thinking led him to use this one. There may not have been anything else available.

Druzhina
Illustrations of Costume & Soldiers