Handcrafted Dalecarlian Horses
Beautiful Dalecarlian Horses. Handcrafted in Sweden. Standing 15cm and handpainted traditional patterns in a variety of bright glossy colours, make each one unique.

 
The Genuine Dala Horse
It was in the small log cabins, deep in the forests during the long winter nights in front of a log fire, that the forerunner of the dala horse was born.

Using simple tools, generally only a knife, toys were carved for the children. The earliest reference of a wooden horse for sale is from 1624, nearly 400 years ago. The fact that many horses were made was only natural, because the horse to them was an invaluable, trusty friend who worked hard on the farm.

Itinerant pedlars took the beautifull carved and decorated horses with them when they went on their tours of the farming districts, to sell their wares. This formed the basis of a market for the horses, even if it was very limited to start off with.
 
The year the Dala horse became a world celebrity.
It was the 1939 World Exhibition in New York that made the Dala horse a world celebrity.

The Swedish exhibition architect had the brilliant idea of erecting a huge Dala horse outside the Swedish pavillion.

It was an enormous success. The worlds press sent home countless photographs and inspiring articles about the amazing horse. During the year after the exhibition, Grannas Anders made 20,000 Dala horses - a very impressive figure for that time.

Nowadays the Dala horse is more popular than ever. In Sweden it is the best known emblem of the province of Dalarna, and in the world at large it has its unique position as a symbol for the kingdom of Sweden.