Fox Hood Ornament Fetches $204,750
A glass fox radiator ornament thought to be a Lalique knockoff and included with four other decorative foxes in a single lot caught the eyes of sharp-eyed connoisseurs. Rather than fetching the estimated $100 to $150 for the lot, it brought home $204,750 for the Pennsylvania-based auction house of Wiederseim Associates. The discovery of this […]
Riding Clothes Make Fashion Statement in Paris
Exaggerated and sexually fetish-ized riding apparel designed by Givenchy designer Riccardo Tisci was featured in his fall-winter fashion show in Paris this season. Jodphurs, horse blinder shaped earrings, and tall riding boots were shown. See the Associated Press report for more details. It’s nice to know we’re fashionable every twenty years or so. Or is […]
Hunting the Fox with the Golden Eagle
In Mongolia, the berkutchis (horse-mounted eagle hunters) hunt the fox for its pelt with Golden Eagles. These birds occupy a place of honor in the life of the Kazakhs, who regard the majestic raptor as guardians of their homes, their children, and even their health. The life of the berkutchi is nomadic, and in some […]
Proposed Ban on Fox Penning Is Shelved
The proposed measure in the Virginia General Assembly to ban fox penning has been shelved for a year. More than an hour of testimony was presented to the Senate Agriculture Committee at a meeting crowded with animal rights advocates and pro-hunting forces. Supporters of the bill argued that the practice is inhumane and often ends […]
Morven Park Clarifies its Future
Concerned horsemen were mostly mollified by the message from Morven Park officials in a pair of meetings held last week. While the plan is to make a wider public use of the Leesburg, Virginia property, it appears that the only equestrian casualty will be the steeplechase racecourse. Other equestrian facilities will be continued and even […]
General Patton Wouldn’t Give Way at the Fences
Three long-time residents of Potomac, Maryland spoke recently to a standing-room-only crowd at a local restaurant about their town’s past. Two of the three speakers—Bob Hanson and Leonard Proctor—had hunted with the Potomac Hunt. Hanson related an amusing anecdote about a recalcitrant General George Patton. “Patton was not a gentleman when it came to jumping […]
Ancestral Mother of All Horses Lived 160,000 Years Ago
Scientists have discovered through mitochondrial DNA that a mare that walked the earth 160,000 years ago is the ancestral mother of every horse in the world. Eighteen different genetic clusters were identified as having come from the ancestral mare reports Bloomberg News, which suggests that domestication of horses occurred in many places across Europe and […]
Belle Meade Hunt a Feature Attraction for Georgia Tourism
McDuffie County, home to the Belle Meade Hunt in Thomson, is one of five northern counties in the Clark Hills Partnership of Georgia. The Partnership highlights attractions in each of the counties that tourists will enjoy, and Belle Meade’s famous Opening Meet is promoted as one of the offerings for McDuffie. “The 46th Annual Blessing […]
Legislation Proposed to Ban Fox Pens in Virginia
The News Virginian reports that proposals in the General Assembly would ban fox penning. Some hunt clubs use fox pens to train young hounds to hunt the proper quarry. Other foxhound enthusiasts use the pens to conduct competitive field trials. Identical proposals for banning the practice have been introduced by Senator David W. Marsden, D-Fairfax […]
Foxhunter/Lawyer Trevor Potter Tastes Celebrity with Colbert
Trevor Potter, a long-time field member with the Orange County Hunt and a member of the hunt’s board of directors, has become something of a TV celebrity. The Chicago Tribune reports that Potter, a Washington attorney, has become a popular figure on The Colbert Report by analyzing legal questions “and trading banter” on-air with comedians […]