Horses and handlers, S*ennin gyoretsu* festival procession, Nikko, Japan 1976

The Sennin gyoretsu (parade of 1000 Samurai warrriors) at the autumn festival of the Toshogu shrine in Nikko, held annually in October. The men in the parade are dressed in Samurai costumes as cavalry and foot-soldier warriors of the 17th century and shrine officials. The pageant is thought to be a reproduction of the funeral procession of the Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) the first Shogun of Japan whose mausoleum is at the Nikko Toshogu shrine. This image is a close-up of two horses in their procession decorations with their handlers.