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The National Sporting Library N E W S L E T T E R ARESEARCHCENTERFORHORSEANDFIELDSPORTS MIDDLEBURG,VIRGINIA NUMBER87 1954 • FIFTY-FOUR YEARS • 2008 SPRING2008 Building a World-Class Museum: Planning Underway for Museum of Sporting Art at Vine Hill Sitting atop the hill overlooking Jr. Washington Street in Middleburg, Reuter, tnhees sehdo umseo raet tVhianne tHwilol hhausn dwreitd- Turner F. years of history. As spring arrives in by Hunt Country, the trees surround- Photo ing the stately building begin to bud and flower. Vine Hill, too, awaits a new phase in its long life, as plans will transform it from residence and office building to a home for a new museum of sporting art. In January, the Board of Directors of the National Sporting Library announced their decision to estab- lish the Museum of Sporting Art at Vine Hill. The announcement is the first step in a process of planning, construction, and preparation for the opening of the museum in late 2010. “We are very excited about our Vine Hill project,” said NSL Chairman of the Board, Manuel H. Johnson. “The NSL board has long Felicia Warburg Rogan’s bequest of John Emms, Foxhounds and Terrier in a Stable envisioned a campus with the natu- Interior,1878, oil on canvas, 39 x 52 in., will be on display at Vine Hill in the future. ral synergies resulting from our Library containing the best litera- ture on field sporting life and art, site and so deserves an ‘icon’ build- Johnston has provided a detailed combined with the best artwork ing to be identified with it. The Vine feasibility study and has drawn pre- depicting this glorious lifestyle.” Hill Mansion is an appropriate icon liminary plans for the conversion Built in 1804 by Richard in the area.” and expansion of Vine Hill into an Cochran, Vine Hill served as a pri- Johnston wanted to become an art museum. A two-story addition vate residence until it was sold to architect since his childhood days in will be situated on the west side of George L. Ohrstrom, Jr., in 1968 to Birmingham, Alabama. He earned the present Vine Hill house and will house the National Sporting his degree from the University of significantly increase the usable Library and The Chronicle of the Virginia and is certified in the state space. “The architectural style is a Horse.The name “Vine Hill” derives as both an architect and a landscape simple Federal interpretation so the from the vineyard of four thousand architect. Working in the late 1990’s two structures will read as a single grapevines cultivated on the prop- in the Middleburg area, Johnston institution and will fit comfortably erty in the nineteenth century along developed the architectural draw- into the context of Middleburg,” stat- with an orchard of peach, apple, ings for The Chronicle of the Horse ed Johnston. and pear trees. headquarters and assisted architect Located at the southwest corner of Commenting on the suitability of Tommy Beach on the National the addition, the museum’s entrance Vine Hill to house the museum, Sporting Library. Johnston later will be marked by an attractive por- architect Hardee Johnston, of moved to Charlottesville, Va., to tico with pediment which evokes the Scottsville, Va., explained, “The work with the firm Daggett & Grigg existing front porch of the Vine Hill Museum of Sporting Art at Vine until opening his own business in house. Hill will be an important cultural January 2007. continued on page 2 Vine Hill continued from page 1 Eleven galleries will provide ample space for the permanent collection and for temporary installa- tions and loaned exhibitions. “The museum at Vine Hill will offer a wonderful space to exhibit fine art within the setting of a historic house. We want the museum to have aresidential, rather than institution- al, feeling, much like the National Sporting Library,” explained Nancy Parsons, President and CEO. There are many challenges in turning a building designed as a residence into an art museum. Paintings, sculpture, works on paper, and other art objects require specific environmental conditions under which they can be exhibited and stored. Visitors to an art museum ordinarily see only the public spaces such as galleries and audito- rium. But the “hidden” spaces of a museum are also vital to its opera- tion, such as climate-controlled art Architect Hardee Johnston inspects plans in front of Vine Hill. storage, a loading dock for receiving deliveries of loaned exhibitions, Cooperstown, N.Y. ment, and futureexhibitions. office space, workrooms, and utility During the coming year, Library The renovation of the existing rooms. staffand Boardmembers will review Vine Hill house and the construction In order to determine the work- the architect’s designs, drawings, of the new addition will commence ing needs of the new museum, the and elevations and will investigate early in 2009. The opening of the Library has sought the assistance of site, zoning, and building code regu- museum is scheduled for late 2010. museum professionals from the lations. Once plans are finalized, the Vine Hill’s transformation into an art Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Library will submit the plans to museum ensures that this splendid Richmond, Va., the National Middleburg’s Architectural Review building will continue to be a part of Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., Board for approval. Fundraising is the cultural and historical ambience and the Fenimore Art Museum in underway for construction, endow- of Middleburgfor years to come. The exhibition galleries in the Museum of Sporting Art at Vine Hill will maintain decorative details such as this hand-carved relief panel above a fireplace. -2-The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008 Extraordinary Donations Represent Three Centuries of Sporting Art A historic building can be a Jr. work of art in its own right, but its Reuter, sopf aacret st hcoatm iet ctoo nlitfaei nws iwthi tthhien .w Oovrkesr Turner F. forty works of art have been by recently donated to the National Photo Sporting Library. The generous donations feature paintings, sculpture, and works on paper by renowned artists from the 18th- 20th centuries including Sir Alfred Munnings, Ben Marshall, John Emms, Isidore Bonheur, and Edward Troye. Felicia Warburg Rogan has generously bequeathed a collection of sixteen sporting paintings by British artists. Her gift includes three works by British Royal Academy President, Sir Alfred Munnings; one by Munnings’ contemporary, Lionel Edwards; two Henry Barnard Chalon, The Finish of the Bibury Stakes at Burford, 1801, by John Emms, six paintings of oil on canvas 48 x 72 in. Collection of Nicole Perry. hunting scenes by George Wright, with the Middleburg Hunt at Goose two by Michael Lyne, and a pair of Alfred Munnings (1878-1959), farmyard and foxhunting vignettes Shrimp with Ponies in the Ringland Creek,shows Mrs. Rogan’s uncle fox- by John Frederick Herring, Jr. Hills near Norwich, the very impor- hunting on his Snake Hill Farm in “These paintings have comprised a tant equestrian portrait of Rose, Middleburg. lifetime of collecting British sport- Wildbird, Peggy and Stockings in a The Museum of Sporting Art at ing art and each individual paint- Pasture,and Two Percherons and Farm Vine Hill will feature not only fine ing has great personal meeting,” Hands in a Barn Interior, and a major paintings, but also sculptures by the commented Mrs. Rogan. She made work by John Emms (1843-1912), leading animalier artists. Frances the initial announcement in 2002 of Foxhounds and Terrier in a Stable “Connie” Massey Dulaney has her bequest and recently recon- Interior (illustrated on newsletter bequeathed a stately bronze portrait firmed the donation of sixteen cover). If there is a better painting of cast of the champion race mare, paintings. hounds and a Jack Russell about, Kinscem, with jockey up, after a Among the jewels Curator of Fine Arts F. Turner Reuter, model by French sculptor Isidore of Mrs. Rogan’s Jr., is unaware of it. “In size, compo- Bonheur (1827-1901). One of the bequest are three sition, and color, the most successful distaff runners of paintings by Sir artist’s ability is her time, Kinscem won many manifest at its high- English classic races, including the est level. The work Derby, Oaks, and St. Leger. Bonheur, is especially rare known for his animalier models cast also because in bronze, was the older brother of Emms rarely the noted animal painter and sculp- dated his paint- tor, Rosa Bonheur. ings,” said Reuter. Mrs. Dulaney also contributed an Michael Lyne’s paintings are oil painting by British artist George testament to Mrs. Rogan’s family’s Paice (1854-1925), Hunter in a Box Reuter,Jr. lopvaein toifn gh,o uFnreddse riacnk dM h.uMn.t inWga. rbOunrge Shtaanlld swoimthe Dbaocyk pedo sTeasi la,leinrt lwy hinic ah s pthae- Turner cious box stall, eyeing the viewer. PhotobyF. KAinftsecrbe rImosnid:z oHer eworJiutshele dsa anBrdko nbJhoreocuwkren,y , tleiocntIoner d a oadfbd osivtpieoo,nr tM introgs . btDhoueo lkawsn oeiyrllk uisss tarm acteoenld-- and signed by artist Paul Brown, patina, 28 x 27 in., whose work she has admired since Collection of Frances Massey Dulaney. continued on page 4 The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008- 3 - Extraordinary Donations Jr. Reuter, continued from page 3 Turner F. by childhood. “Equestrian art and Photo books on horses have always been a central part of my life,” said Mrs. Dulaney. “I grew up yearning to be the little girl in Paul Brown’s children’s books.” The George L. Ohrstrom, Jr., bequest to the Library includes four paintings by American master Edward Troye, two by French/ American painter Henri DeLattre, and one painting each by American painters Jean Bowman and Henry Stull. The Ohrstrom bequest also includes paintings by English artists Ben Marshall, John Theodore Eardley Kenney, and George Henry Laporte; and French/English painter Frederick (Frank) Elim. John E. Ferneley, Sr., Hunters at Grass,1817, oil on canvas, 40 x 48 in. Collection of Nicole Perry. Michael Lyne’s watercolor of hunters and hounds, The Meet; Jean Bowman’s charcoal study of a fox; and NSLBoard member, Jacqueline, rooster hovers above his downed and a mezzotint print and chalk-on- with the intention that they will rival. Marshall painted the canvas in paper drawing by Troye comprise become part of the National Sporting 1812 while living in Newmarket, the works-on-paper in the Ohrstrom Library’s permanent art collection. England – a major center for racing bequest. The oil painting, Fighting Cocks, by and sport. At that time in England, George L. Ohrstrom, Jr., left nine Ben Marshall (1768-1835) depicts a cockfights were often staged during paintings as a life bequest to his wife cockfight in which a triumphant race meetings. Also outstanding in the Ohrstrom Jr. bequest are portraits of American Reuter, rEadcwehaordrs Terso ye b(1y8 09-c1o8n73te) manpdo Hraerniersi Turner DeLattre (1801-1867). Troye’s por- .F trait of Colonel W.R. Johnson’s Fanny Photoby wasi tah fOita kcloamndpse Btietyoorn ddu,srihnogw hse trh teh frielley- year-old season in 1839 during which she won five races. Fanny’s sire was American Eclipse, whose portrait by Troye is a part of the permanent collection at the National Sporting Library. Another racing subject in the Ohrstrom bequest is Henri DeLattre’s Monarch, Millwood Plan- tation. The French painter who visited and worked extensively in America in the 1830’s and again in the 1850’s, was best known for his portrait of Boston, the greatest racehorse of the nineteenth century. Colonel Wade Hampton, II of South Carolina (who also owned Fanny during the latter part of her racing career) imported Monarch from England. Monarch is shown as a Edward Troye, Colonel W.R. Johnson’s Fanny with Oaklands Beyond,1839, oil on canvas, four-year-old in 1838, when he won 24x29in. Life Estate of Jacqueline L. Ohrstrom, from bequest of George L. Ohrstrom, Jr. important races in Georgia and -4-The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008 Jr. Jr. Reuter, Reuter, Turner Turner F. F. by by Photo Photo Left: Ben Marshall, Fighting Cocks,1812, oil on canvas, 25 x 30 in. Life Estate of Jacqueline L. Ohrstrom, from bequest of George L. Ohrstrom, Jr. Right: George Paice, Bay Hunter in a Stall,1906, oil on canvas, 14 x 18 in. Collection of Frances Massey Dulaney. South Carolina, before retiring due ings. Perry’s bequest includes two and also published detailed anatom- to injury. paintings by Frank Elim and one ical studies of the horse. In Chalon’s These fine depictions of American apiece by British artists John E. monumental painting, The Finish of racehorses are augmented by a Ferneley, Sr., (1781-1860) and Henry the Bibury Stakes at Burford, 1801, a bequest from Nicole Perry of four Barnard Chalon (1770-1849). Chalon field of racehorses sprints towards British and French equestrian paint- illustrated for The Sporting Magazine the finish with legs extended in the “rocking horse” convention popular at the time. Ferneley’s Hunters at Reuter,Jr. Ginr aas spdaestpoircatsl tlawnod sbcaayp eh,o srpseasr iantg r ensot Turner detail, not even the white saddle .F sores upon each horse’s barrel. by Photo Fdeiorn ealet y Mpaeilntotend tMhiso wwobrrka ya t hinis stthue- English countryside of Leicester- shire, where he spent most of his career executing commissions for the aristocracy. The most recent gift of art to the Library is a painting by Eve Prime Fout (1929-2007), Chestnut Mare Misty Morn and Foal, painted in 1962 and generously given by Grace E. Ritzenberg. These recent donations exempli- fy some of the finest sporting art of the past three centuries, and will now bring enjoyment to genera- tions of sporting art enthusiasts. “As we move forward with plans for opening a museum of sporting art, it is extremely gratifying to receive such stunning works of art,” exclaimed Nancy Parsons, President and CEO. “We are deeply grateful for these important contri- Henri DeLattre, Monarch, Millwood Plantation,1838, oil on canvas, 25 x 30 in. butions to the Library’s collec- Life Estate of Jacqueline L. Ohrstrom, from bequest of George L. Ohrstrom, Jr. tions.” The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008- 5 - John H. Daniels Fellow Noel Mullins: Writer and Foxhunter Directors of The National Journalist Noel Mullins arrived at the Library in March to research his Sporting Library project, “The Literary and Artistic Partnership of Somerville and Ross, Foxhunting and Travels Abroad.” Edith Somerville and Martin Ross, a team 102 The Plains Road of women authors, collaborated for a period of over thirty years on foxhunt- Post Office Box 1335 ing-themed novels such as Some Experiences of an Irish R.M. Middleburg, Virginia 20118-1335 As someone immersed in the sport of foxhunting, Mullins is well-pre- OFFICERS pared to undertake his research on Somerville and Ross. He was born in Manuel H. Johnson County Galway on the west coast of Ireland. He has been foxhunting since Chairman he was eight years old with the Nancy H. Parsons famous Galway Blazers and has President & CEO hunted three different packs of Jacqueline B. Mars hounds, both mounted and on foot, Vice Chairman and competed in show jumping and Charles T. Akre, Jr. eventing. Treasurer Mullins’ business career began in Karen Showalter Assistant Secretary-Treasurer banking, followed by thirty years working as the Marketing and Sales Karen Halver Secretary Manager for IBM Ireland Ltd., and the IBM European Headquarters in DIRECTORS Paris. He retired in 2000. Mimi Abel Smith Mullins graduated in Journalism Charles T. Akre, Jr. in the Irish Academy at University Thomas H. Anderson Jr. College in Dublin. He has written for Arthur W. Arundel The Irish Field since 1984 on equestri- Donald G. Calder an events in Ireland, England, France, John Coles Edward P. Evans Italy, America, Australia and New Timothy J. Greenan, M.D. Zealand. Mullins’ photographs have Helen K. Groves been published in Horse and Hound, Manuel H. Johnson Baily’s Hunting Directory, Hounds Jacqueline B. Mars Magazine, Hunting and Country Clarke Ohrstrom Illustratedin Great Britain, and in The Jacqueline L. Ohrstrom Chronicle of the Horsein America. F.Turner Reuter,Jr. In 2006 Mullins was invited as a Joan Irvine Smith Peter Winants (honorary) guest speaker by the Royal Dublin Noel Mullins on his hunter, Walter. Society “Speaker Series,” which was combined with an exhibition of his photos on the “Origins of Irish Horse THE NATIONALSPORTING Fairs.” That year he also published his first book Horse Tales & Hunt Talk LIBRARY NEWSLETTER which is a compilation of thirty-one biographies of well-known equestri- (ISSN 1068-2007) ans from Ireland, America, France and Australia. He is currently in the Number 87, Spring 2008 process of completing another book. In 2008 two calendars of his hunting Published by the photography were published. National Sporting Library Mullins’wife, Emer, will join him in Middleburg in April. For over Tel. 540-687-6542 · www.nsl.org twenty years, Emer owned and managed an art gallery specializing in Irish art. The Mullins have two children, both living and working in Elizabeth M. Tobey, Ph.D. Editor, Ireland. Their son, Philip, works for IBM Ireland in Enterprise Software Director of Communications & Research Systems and their daughter, Sheila, works in corporate regulatory affairs. Mullins will return to Ireland in May. Feeling at home in the Hunt Nancy H. Parsons President & CEO Country of Virginia, he has followed the Orange County Hunt and the Karen Halver Piedmont Fox Hounds and attended the Warrenton Point-to-Point races. Assistant to the President The humor of Somerville and Ross’ novels also plays a lively part in the Lisa Campbell hunt field in Ireland today. “Avisiting American foxhunter can still meet Librarian someone in the likeness of a ‘Flurry’ Knox [a character in the novels] on a F. Turner Reuter, Jr. visit to Ireland today, with a horse or even a drafty country house to sell,” Curator of Fine Arts Mullins remarked. He will shareanecdotes of foxhunting in Ireland – both Ingrid Cartwright, Ph.D. literary and contemporary – in an upcoming illustrated lecture, “‘The Curatorial Assistant Foxhunting Humor of Somerville & Ross Lives On’: Tales of Foxhunting Judy Sheehan Packs in Ireland.” The lecturewill be held on Wednesday, May 7, at 7 p.m. Office Manager To attend, please RSVPto Judy Sheehan at 540-687-6542 x 10. -6-The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008 Rare Sixteenth-Century Hunting Book Acquired The Library has acquired Venationes Ferarum, Avium, Piscium. Pugnae Bestiariorum: & mutuae Bestiarum (Hunts of Wild Animals, Birds, [and] Fish. Fights with Wild Beasts and of Various Animals),an extremely rare sixteenth-century book of hunting and sporting scenes with designs by Flemish artist Joannes Stradanus (1523-1605). Cornelis Galle, the foremost reproductive artist in Antwerp at the time, created the 104 intricate engravings that fill the pages, and his father, the famed engraver and publisher Philip Galle, issued this book circa 1578. Venationes is an excellent resource for researchers of the history of hunting and fishing, as well as for scholars of art. Its encyclopedic scope chronicles the many, varied types of hunting in the late sixteenth century from all parts of the Europe, as well as the Near and Middle East. Latin inscriptions accompa- ny the images, though little translation is necessary to appreci- ate the excitement and fervor of Stradanus’ hunts. Stradanus also depicts instances of hunting and animal combat from Greek and Roman history. According to World Cat (a biblio- Hunting wolves on horseback with dogs,Plate 49, Joannes graphic database), only one other library, the National Library Stradanus, Venationes Ferarum, Avium, Piscium. Pugnae of Sweden in Stockholm, owns a copy of this edition of Bestiariorum: & mutuae Bestiarum (Hunts of Wild Animals, Venationes. Birds, [and] Fish. Fights with Wild Beasts and of Various The images designed by Stradanus (who was known as Jan Animals),Antwerp, c. 1578. van der Straet in Flemish circles and Giovanni Stradano in Italy) depict many forms of hunting and fishing represented in the NSLcollection, including the use of weapons, stealth, and bait, or pursuit with the aid of coursing hounds, scent hounds, retrievers, and water dogs. While the scenes portray human figures engaged in the hunt, the engravings in Venationesfocus predominantly on animals. Stradanus revels in illustrating the often exotic, physical characteristics of the hunted animals— the pulsing patterns of the leopard’s spots, the smoothness of the elephant’s wide tusk—but he also instructs the reader by depicting the behavioral habits of the prey,their natural habi- tats, and how best to capture them. Stradanus was born in Bruges (in what is now Belgium) and spent his early career in Antwerp, but gained an international reputation working in Italy, where he arrived at age twenty-three. In Florence and Rome, Stradanus painted fres- coes for prominent members of society and was especially successful as a designer of cartoons (preliminary drawings) for tapestries. Between 1567-1677, Stradanus was commissioned to design cartoons for tapestries to decorate twenty rooms at Fishing at night with the aid of lanterns, with allegorical figures the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, Italy and Grand Duke Cosimo of a river and of the moon,Plate 100, Venationes. Ide’ Medici’s villa at Poggio a Caiano in the Florentine countryside. He also received commissions to illustrate editions of Dante’s Infernoand Purgatorio. Scenes of hunting emerged as an artistic genre in late-fif- teenth century Europe, especially in princely circles, both as representations of the leisure pursuit of aristocrats, and as emblems of courage and self-control. The theme was especially popular in the late-sixteenth century, notably due to Cosimo Ide’ Medici’s tastes, and reflected the emotive, dynamic character and elegant aesthetics of the Mannerist style of painting. Stradanus’ hunting scenes were particularly influential in developing the genre; not only did Florentine artist Antonio Tempesta (1555-1630) produce a series of etchings directly related to Stradanus’ designs, but notably Flemish Baroque master Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) embraced Stradanus’ themes, propelling the taste for hunting into the next century, the next circle of aristocracy, and the next great era of art. Later this year, Curatorial Assistant Ingrid Cartwright will present Venationesand a lectureon its creators, Stradanus and Galle, as part of the Treasures of the Rare Book Room series. Hunting deer with the aid of a blind in the form of a cow, —Lisa Campbell and Ingrid Cartwright Plate 32, Venationes. The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008- 7 - What are Library Mêne Bronze holds published 100th-anniversary books, hound show programs, ken- Visitors’ Favorite Sculpture Exhibit to nel stud books, hunt diaries, archives, and scrapbooks, and trea- Subject Areas? Open on June 6 tises on hunting dating from the sixteenth century. The most popular individual Last year, a full appraisal of the books requested for interlibrary loan Art NSL’s book collection was conduct- in2007 are five requests for Archer in Fine of eadn db y Ranictkiq Sutoaruitaanm yebro, oakns aepllperra isienr Afofrr ictahbey fWictililoianmal Nsetogrlyey o(1f 98a9 )h, oforuser Museum Mmiindeddle tbhuer gm, oVsat. vHaleu anbolte obnoloyk ds eatenrd- DMainsfdite,l iao snt:o rTyh feo r TArlilu Amgpehsabnyt SLhifeee loafg ha ©Virginia mligahntuedsc wriphtesr,e b tuhte a slstore hnigst shtsu ldiey. high- SMtoarwye: T(1h9e9 4H), isftoourry foofr tThhee GGrreeeenneerr Fullerton The section with the most books Gunmakers and Their Guns by Travis was horsemanship with 943 in the Graham Greener (2000), four for The main reading room and 376 in the Economic Impact of the Horse Industry rare book room. For the most valu- on the United States (2005), and three Pierre-Jules Mène, Spanish Greyhound,1844, able books in the collection, see the for The Dog Pit by Richard K. Fox Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond. sidebar. (1975). Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon. On the heels of Stoutamyer’s —Lisa Campbell appraisal, Librarian Lisa Campbell The National Sporting Library is made a survey of the favorite subject pleased to host Pierre-Jules Mêne: areas used by NSLvisitors. Data was Top Ten Sporting Bronzes from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon at the gleaned from User Registration Most Valuable Books Forms, interlibrary loans fulfilled, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts,an exhi- and the subject areas that the John H. bition of bronzes by the nineteenth- John James Audubon – Birds of DaTnoieplps iFnegl lothwes wlisitl l wbea su sTinhgo.r ough- Acomloerr ipcala(t1es8.40-1844), 7 vols. 500 cfoernetmuroys tF arnenimchal isecruslopft ohri.s Odnaye, oMf êtnhee bred breeding, racing and other (1810-1879) was best known for his material directly related to horserac- J. F. Herring, Sr. – Portraits of the naturalistic and engaging small ing. Topics of research range from Winning Horses St. Leger (c. 1824). sculptures of animals and sporting famous racehorses like Man o’ War, scenes. His works represent a dis- famous trainers D. Wayne Lukas, to Sporting Magazine, or Monthly tinctly gentle and emotive view of historical racetracks, pedigrees of Calendar (1792-1870) 156 vols. the natural world, a perspective that 19th and 20th century Thorough- Complete. distinguishes Mêne from the pas- breds, and racing statistics. J. Blan van Urk – The Story of sion-filled and sometimes violent Second on the list was biographi- American Foxhunting (c. 1945, Romanticism of contemporary An- cal material. While some researchers toine-Louis Barye’s (1796-1875) ani- vol#3 manuscript). are looking for information on mal sculptures. famous sportsmen and women, Theodore Roosevelt – Riding to The sculptures depict the eques- sometimes it is a famous figure in Hounds on Long Island, (1886). trian and hunting subjects at which history with ties to the sporting life Original 20-page manuscript in Mêne excelled, including images of that they seek. Examples include Roosevelt’s hand. horses and jockeys, foxes, deer, and a George Washington, Richard variety of breeds of hunting dogs. Dulaney, Theodore Roosevelt, and John Astley – The Art of Riding. Oneof the largest and most intricate- Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. London, (1584). 2nd oldest book ly rendered bronzes shows a Scottish Third, naturally,ishorsemanship, on horsemanship in English. huntsman at work with a horse and the section with the most books of Bound with Corte’s The Art of hounds, and reflects the influence of any topic. Many horsemanship Riding,(1584). the work of English painter Sir books travel on interlibrary loan Edwin Landseer (1802-1873). Mêne Valerio Piccardini – Scritti De throughout the United States, espe- reveled in expressing the beauty, pre- Cavaleria, Giustezza de manegi, et cially the moremodern books, some- cise anatomy, and natural character effetti delle Briglie, Italian horse- times as far as Alaska. Others have of animals, both in the wild and in been used on site by staff from The manship manuscript (circa 1600). the sporting field. As a result, his ele- Chronicle of the Horse, Ph.D. candi- Baily’s Magazine of Sports and gant sculptures radiate with realism dates, journalists, Pony Clubbers, Pastimes. London, (1860-1926). and inner life. The Mêne bronzes will and more. be on view in the Forrest E. Mars, Sr., Complete run of 125 vols. Foxhunting is the fourth most Exhibit Hall from Friday, June 6 popular topic with its heaviest use Capt. T. Williamson – Oriental Field through Saturday,August 23, 2008. by journalists and enthusiasts Sports.London, (1807). 1st ed. —Ingrid Cartwright researching hunt histories. The NSL -8-The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008 Library Honors Longtime Northern Virginia Dressage Volunteer George Hottel Association Visits Library wright Cart byIngrid Photo On Saturday, February 23, a group of visitors from the Northern Virginia Dressage Association visited the National Librarian Lisa Campbell and President & CEO Nancy H. Parsons Sporting Library to see the Munnings exhibition and look at with Volunteer George Hottel early dressage texts from the F. Ambrose Clark Rare Book Room. Among the rare volumes on horsemanship that visitors were shown include works by Federico Grisone, Cesare Fiaschi, March 1 was a bittersweet day as staff members gath- Valerio Piccardini, Antoine du Pluvinel, William Cavendish ered to say a fond goodbye to George Hottel who con- (the Duke of Newcastle), and François Robichon de La cluded more than nine years of volunteer service to the Guériniere. These and other rare book treasures may be viewed Library. President & CEO Nancy Parsons, Library staff, by researchers and visitors by appointment with Library staff. and fellow volunteers Ed Petersen and Tria Pell Dove attended a breakfast in the Founder’s Room with Hottel as the guest of honor. Hottel began his volunteer service in September 1999 immediately after the Library’s new building opened. The librarian at the time, Laura Rose, immediately hired Hottel and started him on a project arranging books. Researchers using the Library’s archives collections are rarely aware of the painstaking work involved in organizing and describing boxes of papers and documents. Over the years, Hottel processed the papers of the National Beagle Club, the scrapbooks of racehorse owner William Perry, and documents relating to Library history. Hottel worked under three librarians – Laura Rose, Robert Weber, and Lisa Campbell – and received the Library’s “Volunteer of the Year Award” in 2001. Hottel The rarebook room houses many editions of Antoine du had worked as a chemical engineer and assistant manag- Pluvinel’s Manege Royale [The Royal Stable]in which er of marketing in New York City. He and his wife, the airs-above-the-ground are illustrated. This 1623 Gloria, retired to Florida but moved to Middleburg ten edition is in the Col. Vladimir Littauer Collection. years ago to be closer to their children. Hottel and his wife aremoving to LeisureWorld in Lansdowne, Va. “In the recollection of the trout fisherman it is always spring. The blackbird sings of a May morning. The little trout jumps in the riffles, and the German brown comes surely to the fly on the evening rise.” —R. Palmer Baker, The Sweet of the Year [1965] in Nick Lyons, ed., The Quotable Fisherman(New York, N.Y.: Lyons Press, 1998), 156. Alan James Robinson, The Quotable Fisherman The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008- 9 - Book Review Yee August Belmont II; owner, Samuel Sene D. Riddle; trainer, Louis Feustel; and Man o’War: ALegend Like Lightning Henry jockey, Johnny Loftus, who rode the by Dorothy Ours. Published in by colt as a juvenile. When Man o’War 2Y0o0r6k . b34y2 Spta.g eMs.a $r1ti4n.9’s5 .Press, New Coverdesign snSutaafmfkeeersde d a Uth piSss aeort antilnoyg atdh,e efm e1aa9tn 1ty9o aSaca cnhufoosrersdde In 1999, The Blood-Horse Magazine Press, Loftus of “fixing” the race – a cloud pthoel legdr eaa pteasnt elA omf eexripcearnts rtoac deehtoerrsme inoef Martin’s tthhea tr efostl loofw heids ctahriese tra.lented rider for the twentieth century. They chose St. Other biographers of Man o’War Man o’War. Although more than a have tended to cast the horse as an half-century had passed since the invincible, indestructible deity of champion Thoroughbred’s death in racing. Carrying the highest weight 1947 at age thirty, his legend remains of his career – 138 pounds – Man prominent in American racing lore. o’War bruised the tendon in his left Man o’War’s legend has spawned foreleg while winning the Potomac a number of books (including an Handicap at Havre de Grace, Md. As exhaustive biography by Page Ours poignantly illustrates, even the Cooper and Roger Treat) first pub- legendary horse had chinks in his lished in 1950, but no one has told armor, and his injury during the the stallion’s story as brilliantly as Potomac contributed to Riddle’s Dorothy Ours. In Man o’War: A the horse in the context of his time decision to retire him at the end of Legend Like Lightning, Ours chroni- and explores the personalities sur- his three-year-old season. cles “Big Red” beginning with the rounding him. Hillenbrand’s best- Like Hillenbrand, Ours thorough- racing career of his sire, Fair Play, in selling book on Seabiscuit (Man ly documents her research, copiously the first decade of the twentieth cen- o’War’s grandson) captivated read- citing newspaper and magazine tury. Ours traces the champion’s ers with the story of how a champion sources from Man o’War’s lifetime. development from foal to yearling to racehorse from meager beginnings Ours worked for the National two-year-old, and recounts in-depth inspired millions during the dark Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame his two- and three-year-old seasons days of the Great Depression. in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., from 1998 on the track during 1919-1920, in Although Man o’War’s story lacks to 2005 and freelances for magazines which he won twenty of twenty-one the “underdog” quality present in such as Thoroughbred Times and The races and established many stakes, Seabiscuit, Ours’ book resembles New York Thoroughbred. track, and world records. Hillenbrand’s in showing the effect Dorothy Ours presented a lecture, Ours’ writing style is reminiscent of a champion horse on the humans “Man o’War Revisited” at the of fellow racing author and friend, surrounding him, delving into the National Sporting Library on Laura Hillenbrand, in that she places biographies of Man o’War’s breeder, Thursday,April 3. Recent Book Donations Hunting and equestrian stories – Point-to-point manuscript – R. tieth-century master of the Piedmont Noel Mullins, Ireland, donated a Moses Thompson, Middleburg, Va., Fox Hounds. signed copy of his book, Horse Tales donated a copy of The Graduate & Hunt Talk, published 2006. School of Fox Hunting: The Old Sporting books – Grace E. Ritzen- Mullins tells delightful tales of thir- Fashioned Race, a collection of won- berg, Berryville, Va., donated twenty-one equestrians and huntsmen derful stories by Malcolm Matheson, ty-three books and four pamphlets from Ireland, America, Australia Marcia Woolman, Trevor Potter and on foxhunting, shooting, riding and and France. He is a John H. Daniels Thompson. driving, fiction by Jane Smiley and Fellow researching Edith Somerville ten first editions by Dick Francis. and Martin Ross at the NSL. Driving & Gauchos - Guillermo Noguera L., Santiago, Chile, donated Equestrian verse – William Galvin, German horse show references – two beautifully illustrated books pub- Mississauga, Ontario, donated a Edee Tudor, Stone Ridge, Va., donat- lished in Chile, Carruajes: Ecos de un signed copy of the book he authored, ed Das Spring Pferd (1979) by Fritz Chile antiguo y profundo donde se eschua Ballads of the Turf and Other Doggerels, Thiedmann, an overview of the el futuro, (2007), and Gauchos de published 2006. breeding, training, and the horses of Patagonieby Philippe Bourseiller (2003). German show jumping, and Das Show programs – Ann Wagner, Königreich des Pferdes(1985) by H. H. Foxhunting classic – Viviane Hagerstown, Md., donated pro- Isenbart and E. M. Bührer, a refer- Warren, Middleburg, Va., donated grams from the Washington ence on the history of equestrian Hounds and Hunting Through the Ages International Horse Show and three sports through the centuries. by Joseph B. Thomas, an early twen- art reference books. -10 -The NSLNewsletter,Spring 2008