cyber day #5
Alexander the Great and Bucephalus
Bucephalus was the famous and well-loved horse of Alexander the Great
whose breeding was said to have been of the “best Thessalian strain” from the renowned
stallion-breeding region of Thessaly, Greece. The horse was said to have been a
massive creature with a massive head, and is described as having a black coat with a large white star on his brow. There is a legend that tells about how a 12-year old Alexander won Bucephalus in a wager with his father, Philip II of Macedon. A horse dealer offered the horse to Alexander’s father for
an enormous amount of money, but the horse appeared to be unstable and could not be tamed. Since no one could tame the horse, Philip wasn't interested, but Alexander promised to pay for the horse if he fails to tame it. Alexander was allowed to try and surprise everyone by calming the horse. Alexander spoke soothingly and turned the horse away from the sun so that it didn't see the shadow that seemed to scare it, and by doing this he successfully tamed the horse. Alexander named his prize stallion Bucephalus and rode him for nearly two decades and through multiple battles to create his empire. Bucephalus died of battle wounds in 326BC in Alexander's last battle. Alexander founded the city of Bucephala (that is now the town of Jhelum, Pakistan) in memory of his beloved horse. Ancient stories of Alexander tell of the many tales of Bucephalus' origin. In these tales, the colt, whose heroic attributes surpassed even those of Pegasus, is bred and presented to Philip on his own estates. The mythic attributes of the animal are further reinforced in the story by the Delphic Oracle, who tells Philip that the destined king of the world will be the one who rides Bucephalus, a horse with the mark of a white star on his haunch (don't really know what that is).
Bucephalus was the famous and well-loved horse of Alexander the Great
whose breeding was said to have been of the “best Thessalian strain” from the renowned
stallion-breeding region of Thessaly, Greece. The horse was said to have been a
massive creature with a massive head, and is described as having a black coat with a large white star on his brow. There is a legend that tells about how a 12-year old Alexander won Bucephalus in a wager with his father, Philip II of Macedon. A horse dealer offered the horse to Alexander’s father for
an enormous amount of money, but the horse appeared to be unstable and could not be tamed. Since no one could tame the horse, Philip wasn't interested, but Alexander promised to pay for the horse if he fails to tame it. Alexander was allowed to try and surprise everyone by calming the horse. Alexander spoke soothingly and turned the horse away from the sun so that it didn't see the shadow that seemed to scare it, and by doing this he successfully tamed the horse. Alexander named his prize stallion Bucephalus and rode him for nearly two decades and through multiple battles to create his empire. Bucephalus died of battle wounds in 326BC in Alexander's last battle. Alexander founded the city of Bucephala (that is now the town of Jhelum, Pakistan) in memory of his beloved horse. Ancient stories of Alexander tell of the many tales of Bucephalus' origin. In these tales, the colt, whose heroic attributes surpassed even those of Pegasus, is bred and presented to Philip on his own estates. The mythic attributes of the animal are further reinforced in the story by the Delphic Oracle, who tells Philip that the destined king of the world will be the one who rides Bucephalus, a horse with the mark of a white star on his haunch (don't really know what that is).
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