Call it a piece of horse harness!
Channel: Recording Archaeology
Date: 2024-03-20

I am told that for years it has been a standing joke that if you don’t know what an object is, attribute it to being a piece of horse harness! Horse equipment is quite a specialized subject and I have seen some very strange items attributed to equine use. I have also helped people make some amazing discoveries which has made me realise the value of the collection for research.

I am not an archaeologist but owner and curator of the Museum of the Horse. The collection represents a lifetime of collecting and studying the subject, both from a historical point of view and from that of a rider. We have a good cross section of bits, spurs, stirrups, and general metalware dating from about 600 BC to the twentieth century from the UK and other countries. I will show a selection of the type of items we hold.

While one can see diagrams and drawings of various items in books, to be able to see the real thing and to be able to compare different styles and dates of objects means the subject becomes much easier to understand and thus aids identification.

The museum is open five and a half days a week. If you are looking for anything specific, please contact us before visiting as we have many more items in store. 

Sally Mitchell is an art dealer whose passion has always been horses. She has collected equestrian antiques and antiquities for most of her life and opened the, now awardwinning, Museum of the Horse, eight years ago. It has had international recognition and is the only comprehensive horse museum in England. Author of the definitive reference work The Dictionary of British Equestrian Artists and other art books, she recently co-authored with Nick Creaton, A Brief History of the Side Saddle.