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Monday, September 1, 2008

Ruby Tuesday and a Naked Horse (Caution)


Actually the horse is clothed and Lady Godiva is....well....naked.
I've always loved this 1897 painting by John Collier. The people of the town of Coventry were heavily taxed by Lady Godiva's husband and she had long pleaded with him to relieve the townspeople of their monetary burdens. He finally relented but first requested that his wife ride through the streets of the town naked on a horse. She agreed and ordered an edict that everyone shut their windows and stay inside. Clothed only in her long hair, Lady Godiva succeeded in getting the taxation to cease after the legendary stroll through town. There is little historical basis for the famous ride but it does make a romantic tale. The term "peeping Tom" is derived from a later version of this story in which a man named Tom allegedly watched her ride by boring a hole in his shutters and was struck blind or dead.

Men.


Image: Public domain
See more Ruby Tuesday entries HERE!


 Copyright © 2008 Mimi Lenox. All Rights Reserved.

50 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm not well versed in art of this sort, but I must compliment that this picture did strike an interest to me :)
Happy Ruby Tuesday!!

Maddy said...

Oh my gosh it is such a long time since I have visited [I am so crap] Never mind I'll stick you on my google reader now it's working again and then upload my blogroll.
Very best wishes

Anonymous said...

There we go done already - I'm getting good at this. It's on the new blog as the other one is wordpress and I don't know how to do it over there. [why does that sound vaguely rude?]
Cheers

Mojo said...

It would have been well worth being struck dead. Lady G was hawt!
*grin*

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the (unverified) history lesson. I knew the name, but only vaguely recalled the tale about Lady Godiva.

Of course now you've made me start to crave some Godiva chocolates....

Mimi Lenox said...

napaboaniya - The painting is sooo striking and gorgeous.

Maddy - Thank you soo much for adding me to your Google Reader. I will do the same!

Mojo - Laughing....

Bobbie - Me too! And Godiva liquor in my coffee cup just for a kick!

Ferd said...

Lady Godiva was apparently as kind as she was beautiful! I'm sure Tom was peeking, or peeping, at her royal presence, elegance and grace. I believe he was tuned in to the historical importance of this event as he observed through his peep hole, being a man of social conscience. Maybe he was a CIA bodyguard, looking out for bad guys. In any event, I think Tom got a bad rap.
We "men" have to stick together! ; )
(But I will admit, Lady G was pretty hot!)

Anonymous said...

Amazing work of art! i love the horse!

RW said...

I don't think I could blame Ol'Tom for taking a gander at that lol!

Awesome Ruby Tuesday Mimi! :D

Jim said...

I did that this summer at Blogstock '08. I was wearing shorts and the styrup straps burned my leg. That was in July and it still hasn't finished healing.
So that poor lady, if she puts her feet in for sure will be sore, and probably other places where the saddle rubs.
Naked riders should ride naked horses. I rode a horse to high school for two years, sometimes the horse was bareback (naked) but never me! :-)
Anyway, an excellent post for RRtU!
..

Ralph said...

Mimi, the red in this riding model is stunning. Um...Mimi, this can not be a self portrait, could it?!!!

Speedcat Hollydale said...

Shucks ... I rode into town nekid fer a dollar. hmmmm
So this is the candy lady too? Weding chocolate from a nude woman saving tax money?

I'm som confused. Is she headed to Bloggingham for a meme .... nude???

Gosh, what a crazy town!!!!!!!!

DrillerAA said...

Great subject and wonderful piece of art. Really well done.

Digital Polaroids said...

I knew the story, and I saw many paintings about Godiva. This one's excellent.
(I also love the chocolates... sorry!)

Norm said...

excellent painting! she's so beautiful..here's mine sweetnorms and travelnorms..

Janell said...

That's a beautiful painting - I hadn't seen that one before. I'm with Jim; riding naked could definitely create some unbearable (pun intended) saddle sores.
Lady Godiva sure had a lot of guts to take up this challenge on behalf of the people she was defending.
And BTW; being a cowgirl, I couldn't hepl noticing what a lovely horse that is!

Anonymous said...

I too had already seen Lady Godiva's paintings but not this particular one, I don't think.

Anonymous said...

A very beautiful photo, Mimi! One year, years ago now, I went out for Halloween dressed as Lady Godiva. It was a hoot. I made a skin colored outfit and with some creative stitching, made it look lit it had nipples too. There were actually people coming up to me in the night club to see if I was 'real'.

Leora said...

Lady Godiva! What an interesting twist for Ruby Tuesday. I'm thinking of the song from the 1970s tv show "Maude"..."Lady Godiva was a freedom rider...". And of chocolate, of course. A vibrantly red, dramatic painting.

EG CameraGirl said...

Well, Mimi, you certainly generated a fun discussion with this photo. ;-)

Unknown said...

Amazing artwork! Thanks Mimi!

Barb said...

Ha! Tom probably thought it was worth going blind!

Ivanhoe said...

That's a one hell of a story going along with naked horse ;o)

maryt/theteach said...

Wow! Mimi, that is an incredible painting! So beautiful and the RED is gorgeous! :)

Linda said...

I always thought that it had to be rather, er, uncomfortable to ride nekkid like that. Besides, aren't ladies supposed to ride sidesaddle? Did Lady Godiva's mother teach her nothing?!?

Anonymous said...

That is a very interesting piece of art! I love it and I wouldn't mind having it in my wall! Just that I have kids:) Mine is HERE if you have a time! Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Someone else beat me to it, but I couldn't help but wonder if Your Highness didn't like this so much because there is an apparent similarity in likeness to a certain monarch who lives in North Carolina. :0) It is a beautiful painting, though.

Akelamalu said...

That's a beautiful painting Mimi.

The purse meme is scheduled to post tomorrow. :)

Sandee said...

Brilliant Mimi, absolutely brilliant. Have a great day. Big hug and lotsa lovies. :)

Dianne said...

I have always loved the story of Lady Godiva!

the painting is lovely

thanks for sharing it all

Babs (Beetle) said...

Very original idea for Ruby Tuesday!

Jean-Luc Picard said...

That is a wonderful painting. This pre-raphaelite style is my favourite style.

Felisol said...

Dear Mimi,
Just loved the picture.
I've got to send a link of your site to my daughter. She's lost in art nouveau, makes her own pics inspired by the style.
From Felisol

Raven said...

Love the painting and enjoyed the story that goes with it too... especially the Peeping Tom part.

Bud Weiser, WTIT said...

It's time that others had naked women on their posts...

Anonymous said...

A gorgeous painting ! excellent choice !

bundle-o-contradictions said...

Ya know, I never knew the story behind Lady Godiva's infamous ride. Thanks for the lesson! :)

Carletta said...

I've always loved this too!
Nice selection!

MyMaracas said...

It's a beautiful painting, and the reds are so deep and warm.

Minkydo said...

Great choice!

Amazing Gracie said...

I especially love this painting. I typically prefer this genre of art even though I've been told it's too romanticized and unsophisticated. I've come to the conclusion that I am a romantic oaf. Tuff.
~~~Blessings~~~

Gemma Wiseman said...

What a stunning painting of a legendary story! Incredible red tones! Wonderful choice for Ruby Tuesday!

ShannonW said...

There is nothing wrong with naked :)

Mimi Lenox said...

All - Appreciate your comments. You crack me up sometimes. I really do love this painting!

Patti said...

Now that's an interesting Ruby Tuesday post. It's quite offbeat, filled with sensuality and a lovely piece of artwork.

You're such the romantic!

Travis Cody said...

Oh fine. Now I've got Peter and Gordon in my head.

That is NOT what I want to think about when I'm looking at pictures of nekkid women.

Brenda said...

Hmmmm! Several questions come to mind. Assuming the story of Lady Godiva is true (and it's a great story so let's assume it is true)... 1) Which historic ride do you think showed more bravery? That of Paul Revere or Lady Godiva. (I'm thinking the latter. No woman wants the town to see her cellulite jiggle.) 2) Do suppose Mr. Godiva just figured she'd never follow through? Or was he kinda pervy? Makes one wonder, doesn't it?

One Wacky Mom said...

Wow....simply wow! What a picture of Lady Godiva. Nice one! She's pretty sharp isn't she?

Speedcat Hollydale said...

why is she nekid ???

storyteller said...

Oh my ... what a marvelous Ruby Tuesday post! I'm sorry to be visiting late ... am relieved I didn't miss it entirely. Thanks for visiting mine at Small Reflections a couple of weeks ago.
Hugs and blessings,

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