WOUWERMAN, Philips
(b. 1619, Haarlem, d. 1668, Haarlem)

A Man and a Woman on Horseback (detail)

1653-54
Oil on wood
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

The three horses are described with extraordinary fidelity, considering their small scale. The white horse, with his head held high and nostrils slightly flared, seems to have noticed the viewer. Each horse bears a different bridle, suitable to the degree of its spirit or resignation.