The Horses of St. Marks

In July 1798, a triumphant procession made its way through the streets of Paris. Echoing the parades of Roman emperors centuries before, Napoleon Bonaparte was proudly displaying the spoils of his recent military adventures. There were animals - caged lions and dromedaries - as well as tropical plants, including banana and coconut trees. And among the works of art on show, one stood out: four horses of gilded metal, taken by Napoleon from their home in Venice. The horses of St Mark's are among art's finest creations - and certainly one with a story like no other. For these statues have found themselves at the heart of European history time and time again: in Constantinople, at both its founding and then its sacking in the Fourth Crusade; in Venice, at both the height of its greatness and its fall in 1797; in the Paris of Napoleon and the revolutions of 1848; and back in Venice, the most romantic city in the world. Charles Freeman's remarkable new book is a fascinating account of both the statues and the societies in which they have been displayed. It is a tale that stretches back to the many competing legends of the origins of these exquisite figures. Freeman reveals not only the horses' artistic and historical value, but also their symbolic nature: how the motif of the quadrigae - a chariot drawn by four horses - has resonated since classical times. As European society has developed from antiquity to the present day, so these four horses have stood and watched impassively. This is the story of their - and our - times.