American Museum of Natural History Research Library
author: American Museum of Natural History

American Museum of Natural History. Horse Under Domestication (Hall); Horse Under Domestication; Hall of Horses; Modern Horses; Hall of Horse Skeletons
birth: 1922
death: 1952
Permanent exhibition. Opened approximately 1922-1923 and closed approximately 1950-1952. Located on Floor 4, Section 2a. Horse Under Domestication (Hall) at the American Museum of Natural History explored the evolutionary modifications and adaptations of horses due to domestication by man (1, 1922, p. 119). The curator was S.H. Chubb of the Department of Comparative Anatomy, who also mounted many of the skeletons (2, 1925, p. 67).
Installed in the space formerly occupied by the Gem Hall, Horse Under Domestication exhibited skeletons of both wild and domestic horses to illustrate changes brought about by domestication. Other exhibits showed the structure of the skull and teeth and changes due to aging (1, 1922, p. 119; 1, 1926, p. 39). The hall featured mounts of a rearing horse and a man controlling the horse in order to compare the similarities in the skeletal structure (1, 1923, p. 117). Other mounts included those of famous horses such as Lee Axworthy, Sysonby, and Nimr. A bronze model of Lee Axworthy by Armory Simons was also on exhibit and other animal skeletons served for comparison, such as the Russian wolfhound (2, 1924, p. 105-106; 1, 1923, p. 117; 1, 1934, p. 127).