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HORSE-SHOES AND HORSE-SHOEING.
the same period as Arrian, also speaks of a horse shod with a sock or shoe, υωδημα, which was probably made of spartea, like the above.
I find on a silver coin of Tarentum,[1] now in the British Museum, and struck, it is surmised, about B.C. 300, a curious representation of a horse and two men, which might, at the first glance, be supposed to be connected with our subject (fig. i).
fig. i
The horse is beautifully delineated, and admirably represents the breed then famous in this part of Magna Græcia. A groom or boy, nude as the horse attendants are generally represented on ancient Greek vases and sculpture, is seated on the horse's back, and strokes his
- ↑ Tarentum, the modern Taranto, an ancient town of Italy, in the kingdom of Naples, is built on a small island, in The Gulf of Taranto, near Brindisi. It was founded B.C. 700, as a Greek colony, by Lacedæmonian Parthenii, the descendants of a people noted for their love of horses and excellent horsemanship. This city was one of the most flourishing and powerful of Magna Græcia, and was distinguished for its luxury and splendour, as well as for its encouragement of the fine arts. For a long time it resisted the Romans, but at last submitted to them, B.C. 272. The above drawing is twice the size of the coin.
