The harness on this little horse caught my eye. It's covered with intricate metal decoration, and seems to have an unusual way of attaching to the cart, though I can't see it clearly in this photo, which is from Ikhlasul Amal's photostream on flickr.
These traditional horse drawn carts are called "dokar" and are found in Bali, Indonesia. They have an interesting history. This article (on a rather oddly named blog) describes the Hindu and Dutch influences on the development of this style of horse cart, their use in ancient warfare, and other fascinating details. It has several nice pictures, too.
Thanks, Kim! Your blog is quite interesting, too, and well written. I will add it to my blog list!
Posted by: girasol | October 07, 2008 at 01:26 PM
Your blog is fascinating. What an enjoyable read. So interesting to see things beyond the usual horse care stuff. I'm going to add you to my blogroll. Would love it if you'd reciprocate.
Posted by: Kim Carneal | October 05, 2008 at 08:57 PM
The caption on the original photo (click the photo or photostream link to see the original) said the men on foot were helping the horse get up a steep hill. I imagine the armored man is some sort of policeman? Perhaps there was a special event or festival going on.
Posted by: girasol | October 05, 2008 at 11:15 AM
What I am curious about is the man on the left a policeman or in some ancient medieval-type garb?
I love your blog ! Never knew there was SO much to know about horses. Thanks for creating this blog!
Grannybee
Posted by: grannybee | October 04, 2008 at 06:32 PM