Fantasia (equestrian games)

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Fantasia in Tan-Tan (Morocco)

Fantasia ( Central Atlas Tamazight ⵜⴰⴼⵔⴰⵡⵜ Tafrawt ) is a traditional equestrian sport that is carried out during cultural events in the Maghreb , especially Morocco . You can also related to livestock markets or traditional Berber - weddings are held.

Fantasia is the European term; In the Arab world, the event is called Laâb el-baroud ( Arabic لعب البارود), in German "Spiel des Powder" (which means black powder ) or Laâb el-kheil ( Arabic لعب الخيل) - called "Game of Horses".

procedure

The Fantasia is performed by a group of riders in traditional clothing on mostly Berber pure-bred horses, which gallop in a straight line next to each other at the same speed. At the end of the approx. 200 m long route, the riders fire into the air with mostly historical rifles . The difficulty of the representation lies in the synchronization of both the ride and, above all, at the end of the shots, so that ideally only a single bang can be heard.

The event was inspired by the historical Berber form of attack. Nowadays the fantasia is seen as a tradition and martial arts and symbolizes not only the traditional bond but also the connection between man (riders are practically unknown) and horse.

Every region in Morocco has one or more Fantasia groups - called serba - with a total of several thousand riders. The events usually take place within local cultural or religious festivals ( moussems ) ; sometimes they are also organized by restaurants specializing in tourists.

Fantasia in art

Fantasia ou Jeu de la poudre, devant la porte d'entrée de la ville de Méquinez by Eugène Delacroix , 1832

In the context of Orientalism , the Fantasia was a popular subject of Western - especially French - painters, including Eugène Delacroix , Étienne Dinet , Marià Fortuny and Eugène Fromentin .

Eugène Delacroix was the first western painter to depict a fantasia. The theme can be found as a symbol of history and struggle in a large number of his pictures, created between 1833 and 1847, which were created on the basis of sketches from his trip to Morocco in 1832 (especially after Sidi Kacem , Ksar-el-Kebir and Meknès ).