The Clydesdale is a breed of draft horse that originated in the valley of the river Clyde, in the county of Lanarkshire in Scotland. They are the result of breeding imported Flemish stallions with small native draft mares during the 18th century. Later, in the 19th century, Shire horses were also used in the breeding program. The result was one of the world’s largest and most recognizable horse breeds. Their renown is largely due to the famous Budweiser Clydesdales, owned by the Budweiser Brewery. To celebrate the end of American prohibition in 1933, August Busch Jr. and Adolphus Busch III gifted their father (August Busch Sr.) a team of six bay-colored Clydesdales hitched to a Budweiser wagon. Since then, the breed has been associated with the brewery and Budweiser maintains several eight horse teams that are used in shows, parades, fairs, and for commercials and advertising. Although not strictly used for holiday celebrations it is hard not to associate them with the holidays in the United States, thanks largely to commercials like this one.
Although I don’t fancy myself a horse collector there are a few breeds I like, particularly draft breeds, and in trying to figure out what to review this December the Clydesdale was at the forefront of my mind. There are many options for this breed available, but I decided to go with CollectA’s 2013 Clydesdale stallion. This figure comes in three different colors, as advertised by CollectA: bay, black sabino, and black sabino roan. I decided to go with the iconic bay coloration, the coloration of all Budweiser Clydesdales.
Adult male Clydesdales measure 17-19 hands tall. If you’re not familiar with horse terminology that means 5.7-6.3’ (1.7-1.9 meters) at the withers (shoulders). They can weigh between 1,700-2,200 lbs. (771 to 998 kg). Females are slightly smaller. CollectA’s stallion is a massive figure. It measures 8” (20.32 cm) from the tip of its ears to the tip of its tail and stands 4.25” (10 cm) at the shoulder. This means it comes out to be about 1/18 in scale.
The figure is presented trotting along, head tilted down, and the mane and tail blowing in the breeze. It’s a beautiful presentation that shows great fluidity of movement and nicely captures the surprising elegance of these incredibly large animals. The animal’s musculature is nicely defined, particularly in the legs, shoulders, and arched neck, adequately conveying the Clydesdale’s strength and power.
On the head you have the underlying facial anatomy clearly sculpted and a bit of wrinkling around the muzzle. A shiny finish is painted over the nostrils and eyes, to make them appear wet and lifelike. The mane is sculpted in various large clumps with individual hairs sculpted within. These clumps fly up and over the neck as if the horse was facing a particularly strong winter headwind.
Particularly well done is the hair around the hooves, known as feathering. In life, these long thick hairs offer a waterproof barrier that protects the undercoat and skin from weather and rough terrain. This is an essential feature on any Clydesdale figure and is exceptionally well done here, with the feathering sweeping out behind the animal as it moves along.
A short tail is sculpted on the backside. Clydesdales, including those owned by Budweiser, often have a portion of their tails removed (docked) but Budweiser is apparently ending the practice. In the past, tail docking was done to prevent the tail from tangling in equipment but nowadays it’s mostly just done for aesthetics. I’m glad that CollectA has chosen to give their figure an intact tail and I’m happy to hear that Budweiser will no longer be docking the tails of their Clydesdales.
As stated, I went with the bay-colored figure, which means it is painted reddish-brown. There is a beautiful gradient of light and dark across the figure. A white blaze is painted on the head and white stockings are painted on the feet. These features, along with the bay color, are required in Budweiser’s horses and the brewery even has its own horse breeding program to meet these specific requirements. Although, on the Budweiser Clydesdales the white on the hindlimbs must extend to the knees and that is not the case here. The hooves are painted tan, and the muzzle is pink.
The CollectA Clydesdale stallion is a magnificent figure of one of the world’s most awe-inspiring horse breeds. Having it in hand it’s easy to see why horse collecting is such a popular hobby. It definitely gets me in the Christmas spirit too, bringing to mind imagery of horse-drawn carriages being pulled through wintery New England landscapes. If you enjoy collecting horse figures in this scale range this one is not to be missed. All three of its color variants are currently in production and the figure retails for about $9-12.
Lovely equid!