Donkey Breeds in Europe - Safeguard for Agricultural Varieties in ...

Cultural aspects
Beyond saving individual donkeys and donkey breeds there is also a view needed
to preserve the culture of the donkey and mule keeping, not just as a relict of an
agrarian past but as an element of an environmentally sustainable future. From
Homeric legends to ancient traditions kept until today, the culture around donkeys
is target of the “Hydra Conference”. Already in ancient times, donkeys were used
as draught and pack animals, but also for fancy reasons or as a status symbol, like
the “Pharao Donkey”, the “white Egyptian” and later the “White Baroque Donkey” in
the Austrian Hungarian Monarchy. Cultural aspects
and religious connotations are important
to understand history and tradition, like the figure
of the donkey and its humility in Islam, Judaism
and Christianity. On Hydra, Greece, members
of the incipient Free University established
a biennial conference on the role of the donkey
and the mule in Mediterranean culture, their
millennia-long presence and the viability of their
future. The first conference was held in 2005
and the second conference took place on 12-14
October 2007. Here also a “Charter for the
working mule and donkey in the Mediterranean” is in progress, which will build
upon the work done by other equine organisations.
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