A Grey Horse galloping in a field

A Grey Horse Galloping in a Field from 1793 by George Stubbs captures a horse in free motion, demonstrating his understanding of equine locomotion at a moment before photography made it possible to verify empirically how horses actually moved. Stubbs's knowledge of equine anatomy, founded on eighteen months of dissection, gave him an understanding of the muscular mechanics of movement that no contemporary could match, but his depictions of horses at full gallop relied on observation and inference rather than photographic verification—which would eventually reveal that many conventional galloping depictions, including some by Stubbs, did not precisely match actual equine movement. The grey horse runs freely in a field without rider or groom, a study in pure equine movement. The work is held at the Royal Collection.

The galloping horse demonstrates Stubbs's anatomical understanding of equine locomotion, the movement captured with characteristic precision.