Valkyrie

The Valkyrie is, in the oldest strata of belief, a corpse goddess, represented by the carrion-eating raven. The name in Old Norse, valkyrja, means literally, "chooser of the slain." The Valkyrie is related to the Celtic warrior-goddess, the Morrigan, who likewise may assume the form of the raven.
The Valkyries carry out the will of Odinn in determining the victors of the battle, and the course of the war. Their primary duty is to choose the bravest of those who have been slain, gathering the souls of dying heros or warriors found deserving of afterlife in Valhalla. They scout the battle ground in search of mortals worthy of the grand hall. If you are deemed by the Valkyries as un-worthy of the hall of Valhalla you will be received after death by the goddess Hel in a cheerless underground world.
The descriptions of Odinn's hall describe the Valkyries as foster-daughters,(just as the einherjar the chosen warriors of Odinn are foster sons). Freyja is said to be the first of the Valkyries, called Valfreyja, "Mistress of the Slain," she pours ale at the feasts of the Aesir . The Valkyries also have duties in the great hall. There, having exchanged their armor for pure white robes, they will serve the warriors they have chosen.
Valhalla, the great hall of slain warriors is located in Asguard, the realm of Odinn. It contains 540 doors each of which leads to a room which can accommodate 800 warriors. The roof is made of warrior's shields. There the warriors spend their days fighting and their nights feasting, until Ragnarok, the day of the final world battle, in which the old gods will perish and a new reign of peace and love will be instituted.

Wilde Jagd

The Wilde Jagd (also known variously as Wild Hunt/Chase, Woden's Hunt, Herod's Hunt, Gabriel's Hounds, Cain's Hunt, the Devil's Dandy Dogs, and in North America Ghost Riders) was a folk myth prevalent in former times across Northern, Western and Central Europe. The fundamental premise in all instances is the same: a phantasmal group of huntsmen with the accoutrements of hunting, horses, hounds, etc., in mad pursuit across the skies or along the ground, or just above it.
Seeing the Wild Hunt was thought to presage some catastrophe such as war or plague, or at best the death of the one who witnessed it. Mortals getting in the path of or following the Hunt could be kidnapped and brought to the land of the dead. Even just hearing the sound of the Wilde Jagd was enough to cause madness or death.

30 years anniversary Escola Portuguesa de Arte Equestre - Lisbon

This year the sister institute for classical dressage of the SRS, the Escola Portuguesa de Arte Equestre exists 30 years.

Once founded in the 2nd half of the 18th century as "Picaria Real" of the Portuguese royal court, and located in the magnificent baroque riding hall of Belem (Lisbon), the Picadeiro Real de Belém (nowadays the Coach Museum). Founded by King Joao V, who was married to a daughter of.... Austrian Emperor Karl VI (yes, the same one whose painting is always saluted by Andreas c.s. in Vienna)

As so many comparable institutions, the royal ridingschool disappeared in later, revolutionary times. But was refounded in 1979 by Dr. Guilherme Borba and the present director, Dr. Felipe Figueiredo, Marquis de Graciosa (a.k.a. Felipe Graciosa). Both were students of the famous Portuguese ridingmaster Nuno Oliveira.

Of course there are some relations with Vienna: in the beginning 80-ies Dr.Guilherme Borba, Dr. Felipe Graciosa, and Joao Pedro Rodrigues (present 1st Oberbereiter) stayed in the Spanish Ridingschool for some time, and were trained by Mr. Kottas and Riegler.
In November 2007 both institutions met in Paris, in a combined program, also with Saumur and Jerez (Les Quatre Ecoles)

The Portuguese ridingschool is exclusively using brown stallions of the former royal stud at Alter, "Alter Real" (founded 1748). This stud and his breeding material has a comparable breeding history as the Lipizzaner!   At this moment the school has more than 60 stallions in training, with 17 riders. The stables and (only outdoor!) training arena is located in the palace garden of the baroque Queluz-palace, the Portuguese version of Schönbrunn (only in pink...)

In the summer season, every Thursday morning a show is offered in the palace gardens. The schedule of the show program is comparable with the performance of the SRS.

A great wish of the institution (and Felipe Graciosa personally) is the use the baroque riding hall of Belem again. There are far going plans to realize this !

Recently a very nice video appeared on You Tube, which offers a good impression! Beside this, a very nice new picture gallery can be found on www.dressageportugal.pt 

The official website of the school can be found here: EPAE

The website of the Alter stud is:  AR

A very nice picture gallery of the stud can be found here: dressageportugal.pt

Favory Dubowina