The Presidents and Their Horses

June 5 - September 7
William G. Kenton Gallery

On June 5th, the Museum  opened a major exhibition entitled The Presidents and Their Horses. The exhibit explores the equestrian involvement of all the United States Presidents through the use of paintings, sculpture, photographs, artifacts, journal entries and interpretive text. It is housed in the museum's 3,600 square foot William Kenton Gallery and will run through September 7^th, 1998.

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The Presidents and Their Horses

Museum Seeks Sponsor for Virtual Reality Exhibit

The International Museum of the Horse is seeking a sponsor to fund a new permanent exhibit which would allow visitors to take a virtual reality tour of the famous French cave at Lascaux. The exhibit is expected to cost $145,000. The exhibit was developed by artist Benjamin Britton, and allows the visitor to experience all passages of the cave. The actual cave, which was closed to the public in 1963, features thousands of Paleolithic drawings, many of which are of horses. It is hoped that funding can be secured in time to open the exhibit in 1998.

Secretariat Bronze Committee Formed

A select committee representing many of those involved with the racing career of the great Triple Crown winner Secretariat has been formed to raise funds for the commissioning of a life size bronze to be placed at the Kentucky Horse Park.

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Secretariat Bronze

Calumet Farm Trophies

Judge Stops Plans to Display
Trophies in New York
(8/8/98)

In a major victory for the Save the Calumet Trophies Committee, Federal Bankruptcy Judge Joe Lee denied a request that would have allowed 17 trophies and four paintings to be taken to New York. The bankruptcy trustees had hoped to allow Guernsey's Auction House to display the trophies at the 21 Club.

In denying the request, Judge Lee said: "I think what is being proposed here is a rather risky public relations gimmick." It now appears that the trophies will remain on exhibition at the International Museum of the Horse until August 31st. If no bid exceeding the 2.7 million dollars offered by the Save the Calumet Trophies Committee and the State of Kentucky, the sale will be finalized at that time.

Museum Moves Closer to
Purchasing Trophies
(7/30/98)

On Thursday, July 30, a deal was struck in US Bankruptcy Court, which may finally bring our campaign to purchase the Calumet Farm trophy collection to a successful conclusion. The agreement, which should be approved by the Court pending the acquisition of several additional signatures, would approve the sale of the trophies to the museum for $2.7 million, if no other buyer comes forward with an offer of at least $2,810,000 prior to August 31st.

Thanks to the generosity of  hundreds of people thought the world, the campaign to save the Calumet Farm trophy collection has now raised $2,700,000. This includes a $1,500,000 appropriation from the Kentucky General Assembly.

Bill Cooke, Director

New Horse Breeds of the World
Exhibit to Open this Winter

Work has begun on the Museum's new Horse Breeds of the World exhibit, which will replace the 20 year old Breed Wall computer exhibit, and will also be available on-line. The new exhibit will expand coverage from the current 63 breeds, to approximately 120.

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Horse Breeds of the World

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Horse Breeds of the World