Bridle

Object Name:

Bridle

Object ID:

1969.014.04

Date:

1849

Description:

Bridle and bit. Leather, fiber, horsehair, iron, and brass. Ornate, probably silver-plated, bit assembly connected to a series of straps of bridle. Short chain connects bottom end of bit. Two 7" chains that end with loops extend downward from bottom end of bit assembly. Distance between side of bit ~4.5". All-metal, multiple piece, roughly triangular portion of bit extends upward between sides. Some short sections of copper tubing that rotate over to angled rods make up sides of triangular section. At apex of triangle, flat plate roughly triangular with rounded point. Bit assembly connected to cheek straps with leather strap that passes through rectangular brass buckle. Upper portions of bridle mostly woven decorative horse hair backed with heavy textile ribbon. Further up cheek piece from bit, two oval, brass buckles allow for adjustment of strap that appears to be at top end of bridle. In top loop section is shorter strap that connects two sides of top loop. Ends of shorter strap wrap around upper loop and have cast non-ferrous decorative medallions ~1.7" diameter on strap. Strap wraps around larger loop and ends with woven, decorative band wrapped around end of loop and name portion of this shorter strap assembly. On upper band with medallions (horizontal) are three decorative tassels connected to it. Outer ones are horse hair, held in textile band with metal button in front. At top of band is small woven cord that passes around larger strap. Similar tassel on other side of central decoration. This decoration has darker brown, reddish horse hair tassel housed in textile band. Out of top of band are two woven cords that pass around wider band ~2.5" wide. Small cast metal wreath decoration with medallion in center that passes over central decorative tassels' cords. Two metal plain buttons on either side of center decorative metal piece. Decorative strap ~1.3" wide, made up of ~15 smaller, woven decorative cords that are slightly supported by heavy textile ribbon. Longer decorative straps made up of single, woven bands. Intricate repeated patterns in straps using dark and light-colored horsehair. Just above bit assembly is large circular decorative strap that has similar woven pattern to long side straps. This bottom loop strap passes through leather bands on back of main vertical strap and joined together under 3/4" wide, woven strap. Bottom loop has two smaller woven horse hair ribbons that extend upward ~8" and meet third similar strap that descends from very top of bridle. These three straps joined between two discs of leather sewn together. Disc has decorative horsehair face made by winding three separate woven cords around central point in flat disc shape. Cords end below disc in three tassels with textile binding straps at their tip ends. Two tassels lighter in color. Central darker brown color. The two outer tassels have buttons on front of binding collars. On front of disc, made from straps, is cast, non-ferrous, decorative medallion. Vertical straps from junction of other two extends around top strap where it ends with light-colored tassel with woven collar; metal button on front of it. Sliding woven collar for adjustment of this single vertical strap. On this vertical strap is woven band that may connect two pieces of decorative strap together. At back of bridle, horizontal band has three decorative tassels. Two outer tassels dark brown; central lighter in color. Darker tassels have light colored textile collar. Woven cord extends from collar, passes around horizontal band. Central tassel has dark woven collar with metal button on front. Two cords that extend from collar and pass up and around horizontal strap. Non-ferrous cast decorative medallion over center of two straps above light-colored tassels. Wider decorative band underneath the two cords. Band ~2.5" wide; light and dark fibers for decoration. On sides beyond central tassel area, two smaller non-ferrous cast metal wreaths with medallions in center. Wreaths centrally located on decorative band and coincide with lower end point of three-band assembly above them. Separate thinner band ~1/2" wide connects at very top of cheek piece, has single brass buckle to connect ends together, throat lash. Another pair of cords connected by snap hooks to loops at ends of chains at bottom of bit. Cords connected together near their top ends in slightly flattened round piece with decorative textile over it. Whole assembly ~34" long. Twisted fiber cord material inside woven leather cover. Leather light-colored, thin, ~0.1" wide. Woven in overlapping pattern around cord material. Some places where leather is stiff and broken off. Near bottom of cord assembly, three tassels alternating with darker, lighter, then darker at bottom. Tassel fibers ~2.5" long. Tightly-woven decorative collars around top of each tassel. Main cord passes through center of each tassel and extends out of bottom. At very bottom is brass/iron snap-hook with metal loop attached to leather thong sewn into bottom of lowest tassel on each side. Single piece of cord ~13" long with single woven collar at one end and frayed core cord at other end. Single cord assembly ~32" long; consists of twisted fiber core with woven, leather casing ~14" long. At one end, additional wrapping material of brown flat fiber with broken, frayed core sticking out of end. At other end is short section of same wrapped material that ends in woven collar that has three smaller cords extending from bottom of tassel. These three cords ~2.5" long from bottom of tassel to three woven collars that enclose three smaller tassels. Cords leather-wrapped above smaller tassels. Fibers in these tassels ~1.4" long and are light brown, medium brown, and dark brown in color. From their bottom ends is another 7" of woven horsehair cord that end in small woven collars that encapsulate two narrow pieces of leather ~1" long x 0.4" wide with pointed ends. These leather tabs are parallel to each other with brown, smooth sides facing out. Piece of hardware that consists of small double-loop end piece. To it is connected two sections of chain length which consists of fine wire loop; then wire-wrapped shaft between loops. Length altogether ~8" long. Wire 0.17" diameter. At end of second length are three loop connectors. Each of loops has two lengths of this wire chain to connect it. At end of one chain is straight piece wire ~2.5" long with top end folded and crimped through loop. Small fiber brush at end of chain formed by fibers that pass through wire loop then folded back on themselves; wrapped by several wraps of wire around them near top to hold them in place. Overall length of this brush: 3.2". Wire wrap diameter: 0.3".

Material:

Metal
Fiber
Leather
Iron
Hair
Silver
Brass
Textile

Dimensions:

H-27 W-9 L-34 inches

Provenance:

Bridle from California Gold Rush.

Credit Line:

Gift of Ethel Cilley Stone

People:

Stone, Ethel Cilley (1884-1981)

Subjects:

Horses, Bridles, Gold rushes