When later, in the year 1130, the Norwegian king Sigard Yorsalafar,
during his journey to Jerusalem, entered Constantinople, his horse is
said to have carried only the small toe-protecting shoes.
The art of horseshoeing, immediately after the migration of the
nations, came near our improvement of the same to-day; especially near
the reputed discoveries met with, which consist simply of iron
protection for the margin of the hoof, fastened by nails. The heads
were sunk into the shoe so as to increase its firmness. Special
consideration was given to local and climatic conditions through the
introduction of toes and heels.
The mechanism of the hoof also found remarkable consideration,
inasmuch as they apparently avoided driving nails too close to the
heel end of the shoe. Notwithstanding this early improvement in the
art of horseshoeing, the Huns (as stated before) took a prominent
part. It appears to have taken a long time after the migration of the
nations for shoeing to become general, as is shown by various
descriptions of tournaments, pictures of horses, etc.
[Illustration: FIG. 18.]
We will mention in the first place the "Percival des Wolfram von
Eschenbach," as well as "Christ von Troies," where there is a great
deal said about horses, horse grooms, and tournaments, but nowhere in
those works is any mention made of horseshoeing.
Pages:
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90