The Epsom Derby Horse Race Metal Ornament

This design features a painting by the French artist Théodore Géricault (1791–1824), who was one of the pioneers of the Romantic movement. It depicts a scene from the famous Epsom Derby, which is a horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. The race is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey on the first Saturday of June each year, over a distance of one mile, four furlongs and 10 yards (2,423 metres). It was first run in 1780. It is the most the most prestigious of the five British Classics horse races (the others are the 2,000 Guineas Stakes, the 1,000 Guineas Stakes, the Oaks and the St Leger Stakes). This image depicts the Epsom Derby race that took place in 1821, and the original painting is now housed in the Louvre Museum.