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A young woman (C) clad in samurai costume leads other local poeple as she rides her horse during a parade at the annual Soma Nomaoi festival in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, on July 28, 2012.  The traditional full-scale festival kicked off for the first time after the accident of the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant following the massive earthquake and the tsunami on March 11, 2011. (Photo by Toru Yamanaka/AFP Photo)

Soma-Nomaoi is a festival that recreates a battle scene from more than 1,000 years ago. It is annually held for 4 days from July 22 to 25 in Haramachi City, Fukushima Prefecture, in the eastern part of Japan. In this historical event, 600 mounted samurai in traditional Japanese armor, with long swords at their side and ancestral flagstaffs streaming from their backs, ride across open fields. Soma-Nomaoi has been designated an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property.

Photo: A young woman (C) clad in samurai costume leads other local poeple as she rides her horse during a parade at the annual Soma Nomaoi festival in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, on July 28, 2012. The traditional full-scale festival kicked off for the first time after the accident of the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant following the massive earthquake and the tsunami on March 11, 2011. (Photo by Toru Yamanaka/AFP Photo)
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02 Aug 2012 12:59:00
A worker caresses a donkey at the Retired Animals Farm in Turkey's Bursa on October 01, 2020. Animal Rights Federation in Turkey (HAYTAP) established a “Retired Animals Farm” in Bursa for animals that were tortured, thrown out by their owners, injured and in need of assistance for similar reasons. Built in the neighborhood of Baskoy in Nilufer district after long term efforts, the farm provides a home to animals of many species, such as horse, donkey, cow, sheep, chicken from all around Turkey. The farm project receives support from various institutions and organizations. (Photo by Sergen Sezgin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

A worker caresses a donkey at the Retired Animals Farm in Turkey's Bursa on October 01, 2020. Animal Rights Federation in Turkey (HAYTAP) established a “Retired Animals Farm” in Bursa for animals that were tortured, thrown out by their owners, injured and in need of assistance for similar reasons. Built in the neighborhood of Baskoy in Nilufer district after long term efforts, the farm provides a home to animals of many species, such as horse, donkey, cow, sheep, chicken from all around Turkey. The farm project receives support from various institutions and organizations. (Photo by Sergen Sezgin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
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22 Oct 2020 00:01:00
A woman pours alcohol from the bottle into her mouth at the Far Hills Race Day at Moorland Farms in Far Hills, New Jersey, October 17, 2015. (Photo by Stephanie Keith/Reuters)

A woman pours alcohol from the bottle into her mouth at the Far Hills Race Day at Moorland Farms in Far Hills, New Jersey, October 17, 2015. Young locals in New Jersey catch up with friends from school and college days at the Far Hills Race Day, which started as a fox-hunting event in the early 1900s. Many racegoers first went to the Hunt, as it's known locally, as children, but nowadays it's an alcohol-fuelled party for them. Makeshift bars are set up in cars, with the horses' efforts on the turf sometimes a backdrop to the main event. (Photo by Stephanie Keith/Reuters)
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26 Oct 2015 08:00:00
A Belgian shrimp fisherman rides a carthorse to haul a net out in the sea to catch shrimps during low tide at the coastal town of Oostduinkerke, Belgium July 3, 2015. (Photo by Yves Herman/Reuters)

A Belgian shrimp fisherman rides a carthorse to haul a net out in the sea to catch shrimps during low tide at the coastal town of Oostduinkerke, Belgium July 3, 2015. At the end of each fishing session, the fishermen and their mounts leave the water to empty the net's contents into two wicker baskets fixed on each side of the horse. This traditional method of catching shrimps along the North Sea coast, which dates back to some 500 years, attracts tourists every summer. In 2013, Unesco recognized shrimp fishing on horseback as an intangible cultural heritage. (Photo by Yves Herman/Reuters)
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04 Jul 2015 11:29:00
Auto polo, Coney Isl. Between ca. 1910 and ca. 1915. (Photo by George Grantham Bain Collection)

“Automobile polo or Auto polo was a motorsport invented in the United States with rules and equipment similar to equestrian polo but using automobiles instead of horses. The sport was popular at fairs, exhibitions and sports venues across the United States and several areas in Europe from 1911 until the late 1920s; but it was dangerous and carried the risk of injury and death to the participants and spectators”. – Wikipedia. Photo: Auto polo, Coney Isl., between ca. 1910 and ca. 1915. (Photo by George Grantham Bain Collection)

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01 Mar 2013 13:23:00
Elephant

Elephant Festival is a festival celebrated in Jaipur city in Rajasthan state in India. It is held on the day of Holi festival, usually in the month of March.The festival features Elephant polo and Elephant Dance. The Elephant Festival begins with a beautiful procession of bedecked elephants, camels, horses and folk dancers. The owners proudly embellish their elephants with vibrant colors, jhools (saddle cloth) and heavy jewellery. It is quite a treat to see female elephants wearing anklets, which tinkle as they walk. One can see people sprinkling 'gulaal' (colored powder) perched on top of the elephant. The most beautifully decorated elephant is awarded. Elephant polo, Elephant race, the tug-of-war between Elephant and 19 men and women are the featured events of the festival.
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30 Apr 2015 16:55:00
Sikorsky H-5 helicopters

“Igor Sikorsky (May 25, 1889 – October 26, 1972), born Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky was a Russian American pioneer of aviation in both helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. He designed and flew the world's first multi-engine fixed-wing aircraft, the Russky Vityaz in 1913, and the first airliner, Ilya Muromets, in 1914. After immigrating to the United States in 1919, Sikorsky founded the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation in 1923, and developed the first of Pan American Airways' ocean-conquering flying boats in the 1930s. In 1939 Sikorsky designed and flew the Vought-Sikorsky VS-300, the first viable American helicopter, which pioneered the rotor configuration used by most helicopters today. Sikorsky would modify the design into the Sikorsky R-4, which became the world's first mass-produced helicopter in 1942”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Westland Sikorsky H-5's, used by British European Airways Helicopters, which fly between London and Birmingham. The Sikorsky H-5, (aka R-5, S-51, HO3S-1, or Horse) (R-5 until 1948; company designation VS-327) is a helicopter built by Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, formerly used by the United States Air Force, and its predecessor, the United States Army Air Forces, as well as the United States Navy and United States Coast Guard (with the designations HO2S and HO3S). (Photo by Harrison /Topical Press Agency/Getty Images). 22nd May 1951
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06 Sep 2011 10:18:00
1944: Queen Elizabeth II (as Princess Elizabeth) writing at her desk in Windsor Castle, Berkshire

Queen Elizabeth II (as Princess Elizabeth) writing at her desk in Windsor Castle, Berkshire. (Photo by Lisa Sheridan/Studio Lisa/Getty Images). 30th May 1944
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24 Oct 2011 13:52:00