Title - Gypsies on Epsom Downs, Derby Week

Artist - Sir Alfred James Munnings

Not immediately obvious as a racing scene, perhaps, Gypsies on Epsom Downs, Derby Week was just as significant a record of the greater social surround of British horse racing as the ceremonial arrival of the King and Queen at Ascot.  Horse traders and trainers of world-wide renown, the gypsies were an important presence in the racing world; and the arrival of a large train of colored caravans, covered carts, and beautiful horses on the grassy hills outside the Epsom race course was a picturesque spectacle as telling of Derby traditions as the carriage park of the aristocratic owners and ostentatious gamblers.