August 31 is the favourite holiday of all horse lovers – the Day of Frol and Lavr, who were revered in Russia as the patrons of horses.

In Ancient Rus, horses were often depicted alongside the faces of Saints Frol and Lavr on icons, and church documents contain instructions that these ‘saints should be depicted with the animals they protect.’ The iconographic scene is called ‘The Miracle of Frol and Lavr.’

The legend on which it is based tells how the holy brothers helped a shepherd who had lost his horses to find them.
In Russia, there were many legends about holy martyrs, one of which tells that the holy brothers themselves established a day off for horses. On this day, horses did not work. From early morning, the horses were groomed, washed, their manes braided, and then taken to Mass to be sprinkled with holy water. According to ancient beliefs, this ritual protected horses from disease. On this day, people tried to feed the horses some kind of treat. A feast with refreshments was organised for the herders and horse shepherds. In honour of the horse festival, women baked froly (flory) – cookies shaped like hooves and pies in the shape of horseshoes.
In pre-revolutionary Russia, the ‘horse festival’ was widely celebrated, and icons of Saints Frol and Lavr were in many peasant homes.

The image of a horse is a common motif in traditional art. Until recently, horses were extremely valuable to people. In the old days, horses were the only source of traction; they were ridden, harnessed to carts, carriages, chariots, and wagons. Horses were used for ploughing fields and harvesting crops. Together with their riders, horses participated in battles; they became heroes of epics and fairy tales. Talented painters and sculptors depicted horses in their works. And the plots of the paintings were as diverse as the fates of the horses that accompanied human life and everyday existence.
The horse is one of the most ancient symbols in the culture and mythology of various peoples. The image of a horse symbolises wisdom and nobility, strength and power, courage and determination. It is with this that the tradition of depicting heroes, conquerors and victors on horseback is associated.

The museum “Collection” section ‘Sculptures’ features sculptural depictions of horses by Pyotr Clodt (1805-1867), Eugene Lanceray (1848-1886) and Paolo Troubetzkoy (1866-1938).

The sections of the collection ‘Lapidary Works of Art and Ivories', ‘Russian Metal Artwoks’, ‘Mantle and Table Clocks’, ‘Automata’, ‘Clocks and Objects with Movement’, ’ ‘Mechanical Compositions,’ ‘Graphics’ (drawings by Aleksander Orłowski and Theodor Horschelt feature images of horses as well.

For the Horse Day (Frolov Day), we have prepared a themed album with the images of horses from the museum ‘Collection’ exposition.

On the cover: Horses at a hitching post. Composition. Kozlovskaya Maria, Bourdon's workshop. Russian Empire, Moscow. 1889