Muly Moloch, the chestnut racehorse pictured here, was foaled in 1798. After some wins he was beaten in a race at Newmarket in 1803 and retired. He was bred and owned by the Earl of Darlington, who commissioned this painting from Benjamin Marshall, the leading horse painter following the decline of the aging George Stubbs. The “Muly” part of the horse’s name presumably came from “mule,” and “Moloch” is a reference to the ancient god who demanded human sacrifices. This hints at a mean streak, which is borne out by the horse’s uncooperative demeanor in the portrait. Marshall captures the restlessness of the horse, whose heart is still racing after the contest and for whom the brushing, scraping, and rubbing down are disturbing. The men engaged in a discussion on the left are all portraits of Darlington’s employees: Trotter, a farmer; Hardy, his trainer; and Thompson, a gardener. Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2016
The thoroughbred horse Muly Moloch won seven out of thirteen races between 1800 and 1803. Marshall depicts the horse being groomed after a race. Evidence of this previous strenuous activity is provided by Marshall’s evocative depiction of Muly Moloch’s damp fur, but also by the horse blanket and drench bottle (a bottle used to administer port or brandy before the race) that are visible in the foreground. The painting was commissioned by Muly Moloch’s owner Lord Darlington, who also asked Marshall to include portraits of his key associates in the world of horse-racing. Muly Moloch’s trainer Hardy is at the center of the group, and he gestures towards his charge. Gallery label for An American's Passion for British Art - Paul Mellon's Legacy (Yale Center for British Art, 2007-04-18 - 2007-07-29)
The thoroughbred Muly Moloch won seven out of thirteen races between 1800 and 1803. Marshall depicts the horse just after a race, while his heart is still racing, and the brushing, scraping, and rubbing down are more irritating than enjoyable. The horse blanket and drench bottle (probably port or brandy, administered before the race) are clearly shown in the foreground. The painting was commissioned by Muly Moloch’s owner Lord Darlington, who also asked Marshall to include portraits of his key associates in the world of horse-racing. Muly Moloch’s trainer Hardy is at the center of the group, and he gestures towards his charge. The name Moloch appears in the Old Testament as the name of an idolatrous Canaanite god of fire. The use of the affectionately bucolic prefix Muly implies stubbornness and dogged persistence, partly diluting the hot color and theatricality of the ancient Hebrew name. Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2005
This is one of two paintings that Marshall painted for Lord Darlington, whose busy stud was at Raby Castle, near Durham in the north of England. The other picture, formerly in the collection of Lord Barnard, is a portrait of another of Lord Darlington's thoroughbred racehorses, the champion Haphazard. Muly Moloch was foaled in 1798. His sire was John Bull (by the famous Herod, a descendant of the Byerly Turk), who won the Derby in 1792. Muly Moloch's dam was a mare called Mistletoe, the daughter of Pot-8-os (also known as 'Pot-"oooooooo"-s,' the winner of thirty races and the sire of three Derby winners). Muly won seven out of thirteen races from 1800 to 1803 and competed against some of the strongest horses of his generation. He did well in 1801 but in 1802 was overtaken and humiliated by Quiz, first in August at York, then again the following month in the St. Leger at Doncaster. Although Muly had begun as a favorite, odds were rapidly readjusted, and in 1803 the horse was given a long break from racing. He was defeated again in October, when Lord Darlington attempted a comeback at Newmarket, after which Muly was retired to stud. The painting records with considerable verity the restlessness of the horse, whose heart is still racing after the contest and for whom the brushing, scraping, and rubbing down are disturbing. The horse blanket and drench bottle (probably port or brandy, administered before the race) are clearly shown in the foreground. The stable lad's name was Tod, and the three onlookers are Hardy, the trainer (gesturing with emphasis); Thompson, the head gardener at Raby Castle; and Trotter, an elderly tenant of Lord Darlington's and an enthusiastic connoisseur of the turf. Marshall was particularly skillful at the characterization of his rich patrons' tenants and servants, as Stubbs was before him. The task of creating affectionate but plausible portraits of men such as this, with whom the squire shared a love and enthusiasm for sport but whose social position was unambiguously inferior to and indeed dependent upon his, created a delicate problem of decorum for artists whose own social and professional situation brought them approximately into the range of positions to which servants aspired and in which tenants to some extent felt secure; but it also required them to see servants, tenants and farmworkers, gamekeepers, and stable lads through the eyes and with the instincts, sympathy, and imagination of the squire. The name Moloch appears in Leviticus, the second Book of Kings, and the prophet Jeremiah as the name of an idolatrous Canaanite god of fire. The affectionate use of the bucolic prefix Muly implies stubbornness and earthy persistence, underlying the hot color, theatricality, and flamboyance of the Hebrew name. Angus Trumble John Baskett, Paul Mellon's legacy: a passion for British art: masterpieces from the Yale Center for British Art, Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, CT, 2007, p. 279, no. 81, pl. 81, N5220 M552 P38 2007 OVERSIZE (YCBA)
A chestnut colt by John Bull out of Mistletoe, Muly Moloch was foaled in 1798; after some wins he was beaten in a race at Newmarket in 1805 and quit the turf. The "Muly" part of his name presumably came from "mule," and "Moloch" from the ancient god who demanded human sacrifices; this hints at a mean streak, which is borne out by his unco-operative demeanor in the portrait. He was bred and owned by the Earl of Darlington, who almost certainly commissioned the work. The men engaged in a discussion on the left are all Darlington's employees: Trotter, a farmer; Hardy, his trainer; and Thompson, a gardener. Malcolm Warner Malcolm Warner, The Paul Mellon Bequest : treasures of a lifetime, , Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, CT, 2001, p. 84, N5247 M385 P28 2001 (YCBA)
John Baskett, Paul Mellon's Legacy: a Passion for British Art: Masterpieces from the Yale Center for British Art, , Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, CT, 2007, p. 279, no. 81, pl. 81, N5220 M552 P38 2007 OVERSIZE (YCBA) [YCBA]
John Baskett, The horse in art, Little Brown, Boston, 1980, p. 106, Folio AN 51 (YCBA) [YCBA]
John Baskett, The horse in art, Yale University Press, New Haven, Conn., 2006, pp. 130-131, N7668 H6 B37 2006 (YCBA) [YCBA]
Christie's Sale Catalogue : Important English Pictures : Friday, 18 March 1977, Christie's, March 18, 1977, pp. 20-21, lot. 35, pl. 35, Auction Catalogues (YCBA) [YCBA]
Frank Davis, Translation in Visual Language, Country Life, vol. 162, 14 July 1977, p. 71, S3 C68 162:1 OVERSIZE (YCBA) [YCBA]
Dorcas Macclintock, Ben Marshall's horse sense : Muly Moloch enjoyed a prominent place in the late Paul Mellon's private collection, Equine Images, Summer, 2001, pp. 71-74, V 2531 (YCBA) [YCBA]
Huon Mallalieu, Sale of Race Horse Painting for £55,000 Emphasizes Popularity of Ben Marshall, The Times (London), London, 19 March 1977, p.16, Available online: Times Digital Archive Also available on Microfilm: Film An T482 (SML) [ORBIS]
Aubrey Noakes, Ben Marshall, 1767-1835, F. Lewis, Publishers, Limited, Leigh-on-Sea, 1978, p. 37, no. 79, NJ18 M3843 A12 N63 + (YCBA) [YCBA]
Paul Mellon's Legacy : a passion for British art [large print labels], , Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, CT, 2007, v. 3, N5220 M552 P381 2007 OVERSIZE (YCBA) [YCBA]
Duncan Robinson, At home to sporting art : the Brick House, Essays of Friends of British Sporting Art, no. 33, The British Sporting Art Trust, Summer 1997, p. 5, N8250 .B751 (YCBA) [YCBA]
Walter Shaw Sparrow, British sporting artists from Barlow to Herring, Scribner, London New York, 1922, p. 178, ND1385 S6 (YCBA) + [YCBA]
Walter Shaw Sparrow, George Stubbs and Ben Marshall, v. 2, Cassell Scribner, London New York, 1929, pp. 52-3, NJ18 St915 S73 1929 (YCBA) + [YCBA]
The Yale Center for British Art, An Anniversary Celebration of Paul Mellon's Great Legacy , Apollo, April 2007, p. 64, fig. 5, N5220 M552 A7 OVERSIZE (YCBA) Appeared as April 2007 issue of Apollo;; all of the articles may also be found in bound Apollo Volume [N1 A54 165:2 +] [YCBA]
Angus Trumble, Diversions of the Field, Apollo, v. 165, no. 542, April 2007, pp. 63,64, fig. 5, N1 A54 + (YCBA) [YCBA]
Malcolm Warner, The Paul Mellon Bequest : treasures of a lifetime, , Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, CT, 2001, p. 84, N5247 M385 P28 2001 (YCBA) [YCBA]
