An equestrian staircase or riders' staircase is a very gently sloping flight of steps that can be negotiated by horses. Its origins may be seen in the mule staircases in steep

terrain Terrain (), alternatively relief or topographical relief, is the dimension and shape of a given surface of land. In physical geography, terrain is the lay of the land. This is usually expressed in terms of the elevation, slope, and orientati ...

in open country.

Use in interior rooms

Its design principles found their way from

road construction A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. The ...

into building

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

. Here an equestrian staircase was a

spiral In mathematics, a spiral is a curve which emanates from a point, moving further away as it revolves around the point. It is a subtype of whorled patterns, a broad group that also includes concentric objects. Two-dimensional A two-dimension ...

, curved or repeatedly interrupted ramp within buildings, that had a gently sloped and a non-slip floor, either smooth or frequently divided by transverse ridges. This type of ramp occurs in the towers of churches, castles, fortifications and palaces as well as in the architecture of other buildings within fortifications villas and palaces.Roswitha Beyer:
Eselstreppe
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216214143/http://rdk.zikg.net/gsdl/cgi-bin/library.exe?a=d&c=rdk-web&cl=CL1.23&p=html.fig&d=Dl820.1 , date=2013-12-16 '', in: ''Reallexikon zur Deutschen Kunstgeschichte'', Vol. 6, 1968, Cols. 21–22

Representation

From the 15th century, imposing equestrian staircases were built in the stately homes of the nobility. These staircases enabled riders to reach the upper floor on horseback. The equestrian staircase leading to

Vladislav Hall Vladislav Hall () is a large hall within the Prague Castle complex in the Czech Republic, used for large public events of the Bohemian monarchy and the modern Czech state. Built between 1493–1502 by Benedikt Rejt during the reign of Vla ...

Prague Castle Prague Castle (; ) is a castle complex in Prague, Czech Republic serving as the official residence and workplace of the president of the Czech Republic. Built in the 9th century, the castle has long served as the seat of power for List of rulers ...

, which was built around 1500, is one of the oldest known examples. Other equestrian staircases are found: * in the

Château d'Amboise The Château d'Amboise is a château in Amboise, located in the Indre-et-Loire ''Departments of France, département'' of the Loire Valley in France. Confiscated by the monarchy in the 15th century, it became a favoured royal residence and was ex ...

, the Tour de Minimes and the Tour Heurtault both have equestrian staircases * in the Old Palace in

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

* in the

Berliner Stadtschloss The Berlin Palace (), formerly known as the Royal Palace (), is a large building adjacent to Berlin Cathedral and the Museum Island in the Mitte area of Berlin. It was the main residence of the Electors of Brandenburg, Kings of Prussia and Ge ...

(demolished 1950) * in the Ehrenburg in

Brodenbach Brodenbach is a municipality in the Mayen-Koblenz, district of Mayen-Koblenz in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany. References

Municipalities in Rhineland-Palatinate Mayen-Koblenz {{MayenKoblenz-geo-stub ...

on the

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...

* in the

Stallhof Stallhof is a former municipality in the district of Deutschlandsberg (district), Deutschlandsberg in the Austrian state of Styria. Since the 2015 Styria municipal structural reform, it is part of the municipality Stainz. Population References ...

in Dresden * in Schloss Riedegg in

Gallneukirchen Gallneukirchen (Central Bavarian: ''Goineikircha'') is a small town in the Austrian state of Upper Austria and is part of the district Urfahr-Umgebung. Motto ''Experience the city, enjoy the land – "Stadt erleben Land genießen (original)"' ...

* in the

Landshut Landshut (; ) is a town in Bavaria, Germany, on the banks of the Isar, River Isar. Landshut is the capital of Lower Bavaria, one of the seven administrative regions of the Free state (government), Free State of Bavaria, and the seat of the surrou ...

town ''

residenz ''Residenz'' () is a German word for "domicile", now obsolete except in the formal sense of an official residence. A related term, ''Residenzstadt'', denotes a city where a sovereign ruler resided, and thus carries a similar meaning to the contemp ...

'' * in citadel in Spandau * in the Old Palace in Stuttgart

Stepless equestrian ramps

Occasionally ramps were built without any actual steps, enabling horses to draw a carriage or wagon up the incline. There are examples in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

(

St Mark's Campanile St Mark's Campanile (, ) is the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy. The campanile is a reconstruction completed in 1912, the previous tower having collapsed in 1902. At in height, it is the tallest structure in Venice and is collo ...

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

(city hall) and

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

(

Round Tower A fortified tower (also defensive tower or castle tower or, in context, just tower) is one of the defensive structures used in fortifications, such as castles, along with defensive walls such as curtain wall (fortification), curtain walls. Castle ...

Gallery

Thessaloniki-White Tower hallway.jpg, Mule staircase in the

White Tower of Thessaloniki The White Tower of Thessaloniki ( ''Lefkós Pýrgos''; ; ) is a monument and museum on the waterfront of the city of Thessaloniki, capital of the Macedonia (Greece), region of Macedonia in northern Greece. The present tower replaced an old Byzantin ...

Schloss Klippenstein 8.JPG, Equestrian staircase outside

Schloss Klippenstein ''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a château, palace, or manor house. Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the Scandinavian languages, the cognate ...

Radeberg Radeberg is a small town in the Bautzen (district), district of Bautzen, Saxony, Germany. It is located approximately 20 kilometres north-east of Dresden. The town has an Evangelical and a Roman Catholic church, and an old castle. History Rade ...

Bojnicky zamok - konske schody.jpg, Equestrian staircase outside

Bojnice Castle Bojnice Castle (, ) is a medieval castle in Bojnice, Slovakia. It is a Romanesque castle with some original Gothic and Renaissance elements built in the 12th century. Bojnice Castle is one of the most visited castles in Slovakia, receiving hund ...

, Slovakia Rundetårn interior view (2008).jpg, Stepless ramp in the

in Copenhagen (1642) Großsedlitz 1840 wilhelm peters.jpg, Equestrian staircase as an element of the Großsedlitz Baroque Garden Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart, Altes Schloß NIK 1456.JPG, Equestrian staircase in

Old Castle (Stuttgart) The Old Palace () is a former castle located on the Schillerplatz (Stuttgart), Schillerplatz in Stuttgart, Germany. The castle, originally a water castle dating back to the 10th century, was the residence of the Counts of Württemberg, Counts and ...

References

Stairways Equestrianism Horses in culture

Use in interior rooms

Representation

Stepless equestrian ramps

Gallery

See also

References