Man the Commander

Do you feel that equestrian statues are boring?

Think again. Maud Webster reveals unsuspected angles of these outdated outdoorsmen in this exploration of a heritage that runs through two millennia, and is still being restored and renewed – as well as interrogated and culled.

The book discusses some seventy monuments selected to sample a range of times and places, and to exemplify issues such as changing styles, restoration- and reiteration practices, masculinity ideals, and other trends and ideas studding the great span of this particular kind of monument.

Following an introductory background, a brief history is presented that leads to an investigation of contemporary expressions. This panorama is then followed by a series of more discursive snapshots of particular equestrian statues that have recently been made or used in special ways just outside the European mainstream, to appropriate or to manipulate - using historical figures for current stances, or turning statuary homage into moveable acts.

Written with an eye for changing masculinity tropes, this book rewards renewed scrutiny of those monumental metal men stuck on their high horses while their surroundings change and move on.