Originating in the province of Dalarna, Sweden, the Dala Horse (Swedish Dalahäst) is a brightly painted wooden horse that has come to symbolize Sweden as a whole. Originally they were unpainted, but the Falun copper mine in the area produced a number of pigments, including the tomato-red that proved the most popular color for the horses. Later the fanciful saddle and designs were added in the popular style known as rosemåling (the Norwegian term) and kurbits (Swedish).

If ever a creature was made for running, it’s the horse. Impressively, newborn foal can stand within an hour of its birth, nurse within the second hour, and be walking—if not outright running—before the day is out.