I discovered the Dala Horse thanks to my son's Swedish girlfriend, to my trip to Sweden and to the great many times this tiny colourful horse turned up in all things Swedish. This horse represents small carved wooden horses which were actually toys created for small children in Sweden. A legend says that the first Dala Horse toy was created some time in the early 1700s during a war. A hungry soldier asked a family for food and in return he created a little wooden horse as a thank you. For every meal, he would make a horse.....Such a sweet story isn't it? Now the Dala Horse is part and parcel of Swedish tradition and you see this form on so many lovely items. I picked some of the best I could find to share with you....
