An Old Horse
Netherlands, about 1650
Black chalk
Sheet 227 x 229 mm; mount 632 x 517 mm
This drawing is undated but could relate to Potter’s Book of Horses of 1652 in which there are images of horses in a similar style. Potter’s small sketches are particularly sensitive and concentrate on depicting animals in their natural environment. This study focuses on the character of this aged animal – the angle of its body emphasising its bony frame, the drooping head and rough tufts of hair adding a highly emotive and realistic element.
Purchased 1948 (No.48.15)