As early as the 12th century, knightly jousting took place, when riders on horses, moving in a circle, tried, for example, to knock the helmet off the opponent's head, or threw various objects at each other (for example, perfumed balls of clay). Then there was a shift in the 17th century, when a system of rotating poles with chains was used, on which various objects were hung, which the riders tried to hit with their spears. But these activities were more for training their fighting skills than for fun.

This did not happen until the 18th century, when the first merry-go-rounds began to appear at markets and fairs, working on the same principle – a rotating pole, usually driven by an animal, with a seat suspended loosely on chains. It was only later, in the 19th century, that so-called platform carousels began to appear, i.e. carousels with a solid base, where the seats, often in the shape of an animal, most often a horse, are fixed with a rod. This type of carousel is still very popular today, for example, in the United States of America, where Carousel Day also comes from. This date is associated with the first patent of this attraction in 1871.

We commemorate this day with a painting from our gallery collection depicting a chain carousel. Its author is Zdeněk Balaš (1904–1997), a painter, graphic artist and teacher who was inspired in his work by his native Rakovník region and the Central Bohemian Highlands, his frequent motifs were landscapes, suburban gardens or scenes from fairs.

Jana Jarošová, July 2024