Description:

Throughout its history, Jerez has been strongly influenced by the different cultures that have settled in its lands, each leaving its mark in the city and surroundings. The cultures of Phoenician Xera, the strongly Roman Ceret, the important Muslim Sherish, and the beautiful Christian buildings have introduced a wide variety of architectural styles and unique buildings which make Jerez a beautiful city with a peculiar cityscape. Few places in Spain enjoy the international renown of Jerez. Thanks to its Jerez or sherry wines, the name of the city crossed the international borders many years ago and has since gone on to become truly universal.

Tour: 

A city of mysterious streets, manors and palaces, of countless wine cellars that exude the imperishable aroma of wine. In its famous peñas flamencas, authentic shrines to everything flamenco, you can listen to bulerías, at any time, any day, bringing to one's memory the timeless voices of great flamenco singers of the past who sung to the stamping feet of celebrated flamenco dancers. Baroque churches with richly gilded baroque altarpieces, their sacred images are the raison d'etre of its Holy Week, are actively lived and felt. A city called Asta Regia in the bygone days.

Jerez is not only about wine and architectural beauty but it has something for everyone. It has something for everyone. It is the land of the Carthugian horse and fighting bull; it is the birthplace of flamenco; it is the city of motor racing and it has a monumental city centre which has been declared of historical and artistic interest

Jerez is a city where tradition and modernity coexist in perfect harmony. Large shopping centers and boulevards converge towards the lively, bustling city center, where shopping and tapas sampling go hand in hand. All its distinctive features, combined with its extraordinary geographical situation and climate, unique tourist attractions and modern infrastructures, make Jerez the perfect place to live and visit.

MUSEUM OF EQUESTRIAN ARTS

A BRIEF ITINERARY:
In order to fully appreciate the Museum of Equestrian Art and the art it house, the visit includes a walk through the Royal School, including the Recreo de las Cadenas Palace, a work of art in its own right, designed by Garnier, the renowned architect of the Paris Opera House, and built by his disciple Ravel.

a) Botanical Garden and History of the Horse 
While strolling through the Botanical Garden, the visitors will surely enjoy seeing live Przewalski horse with lineage of over 12,000 years, being an essential link to modern horses. It is the only king of wild horse currently in existence as other technically wild horses, are really “cimarrones”, descendants of domesticated horses that turned wild.

b) Harness Shop
The Harness Shop of the Royal School Foundation is an integral part of the museum's facilities. It is an authentic laboratory for restoration, research and creation of traditional harnesses, tailored like a second skin for the horse. The Harness Shop is also a school dedicated to the preservation and promotion of craft skills which are essential to the equestrian world.

c) Recreo de las Cadenas Palace
The Palace houses the main interpretative displays which help visitors experience and better understand equestrian arts, whilst, at the same time, enjoy the Recreo de las Cadenas Palace itself. The spectacular living quarters and chapel are open to visitors and used to house temporary exhibitions and other activities related to the Museum.
Due to contradictory accounts, the attribution of the design of the Museum of Equestrian Arts to Garnier was questioned and researched during construction. The report submitted by Manuel Antonio Garcia Paz has been conclusive: Garnier was the architect of the project and his disciple, Ravel, carried out the construction. Interestingly, it was discovered that Garnier had designed a riding school in France which was never built. The vagaries of destiny have made it possible to transform one of his buildings into a riding school and equestrian centre many years after his death.

After the Recreo de las Cadenas Palace, the visitors may continue to enjoy the Royal School's other facilities: riding ring, stables, training area, etc., and watch the "How the Andalusian Horses Dance" show, a live performance of equestrian art. They can visit the Carriage Museum, which also forms part of the Royal School of Equestrian Art Foundation.

THE MAIN THEMES:

• The origins of equestrian art in Andalusia.
• The history of equestrian art in the world.
• The history of the Royal School.
• The outstanding architecture of the Royal School.
• Horses Talk.
• Advanced Dressage.
• Equestrian Professions.
• The origins and evolution of the Horse.
• Mythical Horses.
• An equestrian dialogue with a virtual horsewoman.
• Interactive games on equestrian art.
• Horses of all five continents.
• World equestrian championship.

TRADITION AND INNOVATION:
The Museum uses state-of-the-art museographic techniques to enhance the enjoyment and understanding of equestrian art:

• State-of-the-art interactive multimedia technology that enables visitors to explore equestrian art, e.g. a virtual horsewoman who answers those simple questions that everyone would like to ask, but only experts know the answer.
• High definition digital images, combining a quality found only in cinemas and high level of scientific rigor, have been used to depict historical landmarks of equestrian art. These high definition images are rendered by a solid state recording medium of professional quality, better than a DVD.
• Holographic simulations on full-scale models with detailed explanations of the Recreo de las Cadenas Palace that combine real and virtual scenes.
• Reduced-scale models which show exactly how the Arenal Square looked and was decorated in the 18th century when it was the venue for equestrian exhibitions titled "Bueltas de escaramuza de gala a la gineta". An equestrian art show from that time is re-enacted on the scale model using miniature figures of horses and their riders. The Square is festooned with coats of arms, pennants and other ornaments of the time.
• Copies of works of art which highlight the importance of the horse in Andalusia, including a fragment of Tartessian harness from the 7th century BC, found in the lower Guadalquivir, Iberian and Punic coins depicting horses and horsemen, tiles with a distinctly equestrian flair discovered at the nearby Charterhouse in Jerez or a scene from the Toledo Cathedral choir which perfectly depicts the horse riding style of Moors (a la jineta) and Christians (a la brida) in the 15th century.
• The miniature figures designed and crafted by the local artist Bartolomé Macias, which are genuine sculptures, are used to illustrate the historical evolution of equestrian art, main dressage movements and different equestrian disciplines. For example, visitors can observe the capriole movement in audiovisual format, while, at the same time, watch the decisive moment frozen in the miniature figure.

Large format, digital panels displaying text and photographs are used guide visitors step by step through the history of equestrian art. The panels form a five meter long, parallel timeline depicting general historical events, milestones of the equestrian world and other outstanding equestrian events in Andalusia.