03-01-2007, 04:19 PM
I'm in agreement with Arthes and tommy303, though I would hazard that instead of linen they used damp strips of leather that would have tightened when dried, holding the shoe more snuggly in place. (Have you read anything about them actually welding the shoe on?)
It's also possible that the shoe was used in an attempt to keep gravel and other small stones from getting lodged near the frog (the tender underside of the hoof), and thus protect the horses from going lame. (And possibly also to keep the hoofwall from spliting) If used in this way, I can only speculate that their riders would have taken the time to put them on before going over rocky/difficult terrain.
It's also possible that the shoe was used in an attempt to keep gravel and other small stones from getting lodged near the frog (the tender underside of the hoof), and thus protect the horses from going lame. (And possibly also to keep the hoofwall from spliting) If used in this way, I can only speculate that their riders would have taken the time to put them on before going over rocky/difficult terrain.
K.E.McElligott
"I am not ashamed to confess that I am ignorant of what I do not know." - M.Tullius Cicero
"I am not ashamed to confess that I am ignorant of what I do not know." - M.Tullius Cicero
