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The horse has always played an important role
in Swedish mythology and tradition.
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The Vikings brought small and very strong
horses on their ravages, but also in everyday
work a good horse would mean a great difference.
As a result of this the horse was nearly
sacred in medieval Sweden.
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Eating horse-meat was, as an example, just
as taboo as eating cow in present-
day India.
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This is part of the background of the Dalahorse.
In the beginning, the horses were carved
as toys and gifts for the children. During
long winter nights, with not much else to
do for amusement, farmers carved the horses
to their children. One may imagine the cold
winter night, with a log fire burning and
the wolves howling outside. In front of the
fireplace the husband is carving a horse from
a single piece of wood using only a simple
knife. Aside an expectant child is waiting
for a new toy to take shape.
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At this time, and through history, farming
hasn't been as significant for the economy
in Dalarna as in the rest of Sweden. Mining
and forestry has been the mainstay all since
the 13th century.
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Later on the people of Dalarna often walked
to Stockholm to find temporary work.
This led to the spread of the Dalahorse outside
Dalarna. The oldest examples of Dalahorses
sold as gifts or souvenirs are from the
17th century.
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The pattern of today is about 150 years
old and reflects the style of painting known
as "Kurbits". Kurbits was originally
a way of decorating the rooms. It often has
religious motives and rich ornaments, flowers
and traditional symbols. Some may find a touch
of naïve style in the Kurbits painting, which
may derive from the fact that the painters
basically were autodidacts.
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In the 19th century, Stickå-Erik Hansson
from Mora introduced the technique of
painting with two colours in the same brush.
Even today the Dalahorses are painted in this
traditional way. The horse of today
is still a handicraft article, made
of pine, and at least nine different persons
have contributed with their skill to create
each horse. However, although great demand
there is a risk that the genuine Dalahorse
soon will be extinct. Cheap copies are taking
over, and the skill behind the genuine production
methods is slowly disappearing. Hopefully
a revival for handicraft will save the knowledge
needed to maintain the tradition.
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The Dalahorses sold at Amanda's are
all genuine handicraft from the province of
Dalarna. Aside from the well-known model we
can also offer a unique model based on older
tradition. This very special model is individually
crafted, painted and numbered. We are
very proud to offer this unique sample
of Swedish handicraft tradition.
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