Jacques Palais Presents: BIG HORN is an expansive collection of video content primarily hosted on Vimeo, where it is categorized under "Action + Adventure" and "Short Films". While the individual segments are often shorter, the total duration of the collection spans nearly 8 hours (7 hours and 58 minutes). Content and Series Overview

Active primarily during the 1950s and 1960s, Palais was among the first Western hunters to systematically pursue the wild sheep of Central Asia. While most of his contemporaries were focused on the Rocky Mountain bighorn or the Desert bighorn of Mexico, Palais set his sights on the "Big Horns" of the Himalayas and the Altai Mountains.

5. Historical Context: Post-WWII American Equestrian Scene

To understand why Jacques Palais and Big Horn matter, one must consider the era:

Unlike many medallists who focused on portraits or historical battles, Palais looked westward—specifically to the mountains of North America and the European Alps. He was fascinated by ungulates: sheep, goats, and ibex. His studio wall reportedly held dozens of skulls and horns, studying the spiral and the striation. This obsession culminated in the 1970s with a limited series of cast bronze and silver plaques featuring the Big Horn sheep (Ovis canadensis).

3. The Missing Mount

Perhaps the greatest mystery: Where are the horns now? The last verified photograph of the Jacques Palais Big Horn was taken in 1972 at a taxidermy shop in Paris. After Palais’ death in 1978, his estate was liquidated. The full-body mount of the ram vanished. For decades, rumors have circulated:

• Location: Mont Blanc Massif, on the border between France and Italy.
• Elevation: 4,208 meters (Pointe Walker).
• Reputation: The North Face of the Grandes Jorasses is one of the three great north faces of the Alps (along with the Eiger and the Matterhorn). It is a massive, icy, and technical wall.

• Name: Big Horn (sometimes recorded as "Big Horn" without a breed suffix)
• Breed: Likely a French Warmblood (Selle Français) or a Dutch Warmblood (KWPN) from the mid-century. Some records suggest an Anglo-Arabian cross due to his refinement.
• Color: Bay or dark bay, standing approx. 16.1 hands.
• Key Traits: Exceptional jumping ability, long stride, and a docile but energetic temperament.
• Role: Big Horn was either imported by Jacques Palais from Europe or was a home-bred son of a European stallion. Palais used Big Horn as his primary stud for producing competition horses, especially for the developing American show jumping circuit.