Exercicios de la Gineta

Exercicios de la Gineta

This codex illustrating various exercises for horsemen was written by Gregorio de Tapia y Salcedo (1617–71), a knight and author who received a Jesuit education at the Colegio Imperial and possessed an extensive library and collection of paintings. As a member of the Order of Santiago, he dedicated three of his works to the Order’s history and rules. His magnum opus on equestrianism was published in 1643 by Diego Díaz with numerous copperplates by María Eugenia de Beer (d. 1652), the daughter of the Dutch painter Cornelius de Beer (1591–1651), who moved to Spain in 1618 and signed her works with the name “Doña*.
It is an unusual codex because it is in landscape format, allowing even more room for de Beer’s fine engravings, many of which are signed with a simple "Doña". The neatly printed text is presented in simple double frames and is further adorned with engraved initials and small ornaments. The portrait of a 14-year-old Prince Balthasar Charles of Asturias (1629–46), to whom the work is dedicated, precedes the inscription.

A Charming and Practical Guide to Equestrianism

Salcedo was proud of his work and defended it as the most outstanding text on the subject of riding. José Pellicer de Ossau Salas y Tovar (1602–79), a royal Spanish chronicler, was given the task of censoring the work, he said that it “was more worthy of esteem and appreciation than of censorship” because it was written with such elegance, both with respect to the grandness of the Castilian in which it was written, and with respect to how deftly it deals with such a complex subject. As he said, “Novelty and success run side by side…”
However, the work was novel in the sense that it was new and innovative – it was by no means trifling. After beginning with a general summary of the knowledge of horses, Salcedo’s treatise proceeds in a practical manner beginning with the taming of wild horses and the training of young colts before moving onto the use of tack and other equipment. Once the fundamentals of horsemanship have been established, Salcedo goes into the specifics of different types of races, games, and even instructions for engaging in combat on horseback. The treatise was thus intended to be a comprehensive handbook for the young gentleman horseman.