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♘امیرحسین♞
♘ مدیریت انجمن اسب ایران ♞
The horseshoe is considered very lucky and used to be hung in many homes to protect and attract good fortune for the family residing inside. As with many superstitions, there are contradictions to be found with the beliefs associated with the horseshoe. For instance, many believe that to hang it with the ends pointing upwards is good luck as it acts as a storage container of sorts for any good luck that happens to be floating by, whereas to hang it with the ends pointing down, is bad luck as all the good luck will fall out. Others believe that no matter which way you hang the horseshoe, good luck will come. According to this superstition, the ends-pointing-down display simply means that the good luck is able to flow out and surround the home. If the horseshoe is hung over a doorway, ends up will catch good luck and ends down will let the good luck spill over the door and stop evil from entering. Perhaps a combination of the two was used so that after a few days, when the horseshoe was filled with good luck, it would then need to be emptied so that residents could benefit from that luck and the process would be repeated until the end of time.
Horseshoes were also considered lucky because they were made by blacksmiths, which is also considered a very lucky trade. Because they worked with elemental fire and magical iron, they were thought to have special powers. It was believed that a blacksmith could heal the sick and if a couple was married by a blacksmith, their marriage would be a happy one. Their work with horses also brought them much power and prestige, not just because they made the lucky horseshoe but also because they were the keepers of the Horseman's Word (the basis for the movie, The Horse Whisperer.)
Horseshoes were originally made from iron, which may also account for the superstitions that are associated with this object. Iron was considered magical because it was able to withstand fire and was much stronger than other metals. The superstitions for iron are thought to originate in prehistoric times. It was used as a charm to ward off evil spirits.
Another aspect of the horseshoe that added to it's good luck was the fact that it was commonly held in place by seven iron nails. Since ancient times, the number seven was considered very important. Life was divided into seven ages; a rainbow has seven colors; astrology once held that seven planets made up the universe; there are seven deadly sins; a seventh child was thought to have special powers; there are seven days in a week; the moon changes from one phase to another every seven days; and a long-held belief states that the body goes through a radical change every seven years.
Horseshoes were also considered lucky because they were made by blacksmiths, which is also considered a very lucky trade. Because they worked with elemental fire and magical iron, they were thought to have special powers. It was believed that a blacksmith could heal the sick and if a couple was married by a blacksmith, their marriage would be a happy one. Their work with horses also brought them much power and prestige, not just because they made the lucky horseshoe but also because they were the keepers of the Horseman's Word (the basis for the movie, The Horse Whisperer.)
Horseshoes were originally made from iron, which may also account for the superstitions that are associated with this object. Iron was considered magical because it was able to withstand fire and was much stronger than other metals. The superstitions for iron are thought to originate in prehistoric times. It was used as a charm to ward off evil spirits.
Another aspect of the horseshoe that added to it's good luck was the fact that it was commonly held in place by seven iron nails. Since ancient times, the number seven was considered very important. Life was divided into seven ages; a rainbow has seven colors; astrology once held that seven planets made up the universe; there are seven deadly sins; a seventh child was thought to have special powers; there are seven days in a week; the moon changes from one phase to another every seven days; and a long-held belief states that the body goes through a radical change every seven years.
♘امیرحسین♞
♘ مدیریت انجمن اسب ایران ♞
Horseshoe is considered a lucky symbol in English custom. It resembles the other symbols associated with good fortune in other cultures such as crescent, half circle or "U". Crescent or "U" shape is often said to be the symbol of fertility and also possesses power to ward of evil spirit. As it is made of iron for horses, it is also linked to strength and power. As such, combining all these signs of good luck, horseshoe is regarded as a powerful device to bring fortune and repel evil. It is usually nailed to the front door to protect the household from uninvited visitors like witches and evils. However, the horseshoe must be placed in an upright "U" position so that the good fortune will be retained by the household.
♘امیرحسین♞
♘ مدیریت انجمن اسب ایران ♞
He laughs like a boor who has found a horse-shoe.
--Dutch proverb.
Throughout Germany the belief obtains that a horseshoe found on the road, and nailed on the threshold of a house with the points directed outward, is a mighty protection not only against hags and fiends, but also against fire and lightning; but, reversed, it brings misfortune. In eastern Pennsylvania, however, even in recent times, the horse-shoe is often placed with the prongs pointing inward, so that the luck may be spilled into the house. The horse-shoe retains its potency as a charm on the sea as well as on land, and it has long been a practice among sailors to nail this favorite amulet against the mast of a vessel, whether fishing-boat or large sea-going craft, as a protection against the Evil One. The shoe of a "wraith-horse," the mythical off spring of a water-stallion, is especially esteemed by Scotch mariners for this purpose.
In Bohemia only exists the superstition exactly opposite to that elsewhere prevalent, namely, that whoever picks up a horse-shoe thereby ipso facto picks up ill-luck for himself,--a notable example in folk-lore of the exception which proves the rule. The Bohemians, however, believe a nailed-up horse-shoe to be a cure for lunacy.
As a general rule, the degree of luck pertaining to a horse-shoe found by chance has been thought to depend on the number of nails remaining in it: the more nails the more luck.
In Northumberland the holes free of nails are carefully counted, as these indicate, presumably in years, how soon the finder of the shoe may expect to be married. The peasants of northern Portugal prefer mule-shoes having an uneven number of nail-holes, as counteractives of the evil influences of the dreaded, omnipresent witches known as the Bruxas.
In Derbyshire it is customary to drive a horseshoe, prongs upward, between two flagstones near the door of a dwelling. This position is sometimes explained by saying that, so placed, the luck cannot spill out.
In a short poem called "The Lucky Horse-Shoe," by James T. Fields, an amusing account is given of a farmer who picked up an old horse-shoe from the road, and nailed it upon the door of his barn with the prongs downward. But, far from bringing him luck, Fortune thereafter frowned upon him; his hay crop failed, a drought blighted his vegetables, and his hens refused to lay.
The good farmer, discouraged and perplexed, confided his woes to the sympathetic ear of an aged wayfarer who chanced to pass by, relating how misfortunes had pursued him since he had fastened up the old horse-shoe.
The stranger asked to see the shoe;
The farmer brought it into view;
But when the old man raised his head,
He laughed outright and quickly said:
"No wonder skies upon you frown,
You've nailed the horse-shoe upside down;
Just turn it round, and soon you'll see
How you and Fortune will agree."
The farmer profited by the friendly suggestion and reversed his luck-token, whereupon the capricious goddess fairly beamed upon him. His barn was soon filled with hay, his storehouses were packed with the kindly fruits of the earth, while his wife presented him with twins.
Farmers may well take heed how they nail up horseshoes over the doors of their barns. To obtain the best results, it would seem advisable to place a pair of these useful articles on each farm building, one with the points upward, the other reversed; for in this way they may not only hope to win Fortune's smiles, but also to keep all witches and unfriendly spirits at a respectful distance.
In an interesting story for children in "St. Nicholas," April, 1897, by Rudolph F. Bunner, entitled "The Horse-Shoe of Luck," the writer introduces Luck in the character and garb of a wandering clown or jester, mounted upon a white horse. This jovial traveler seeks a night's lodging at a wayside farmhouse, and when he has almost reached its hospitable door, his steed casts a shoe, which the farmer hastens to pick up and carefully hangs on a hook above the door. Luck proved to be a most amusing fellow, and after supper he entertained the children of the household in a royal manner, showing them, among other things, how to drop china and glass without breaking them, and how to tumble down stairs without getting hurt. So the evening passed merrily enough, and all retired for the night in a happy frame of mind. Early in the morning the farmer was awakened by the splash of raindrops upon his face, and, hastily arising, he discovered that the roof had sprung a leak, and that his guest had unceremoniously departed. Nettled by such conduct, the farmer and his family hastened in pursuit of the fleeing stranger, guided by the hoof-prints of his white horse; and when they had overtaken him, the farmer reproached his late guest for having left his house so abruptly. Whereupon Luck repied: "I left you, not because you could not even nail my horse-shoe over your door, but hung it upside down, so the luck ran out at the ends, but because of your own mistake. You trusted to me; you trusted to Luck. Ah ha! "
In the northernmost districts of Scotland exists a belief that if the first shoe put on the foot of a stallion be hung on the byre door, no harm will come near the cows; and in the same region, if a horse-shoe be placed between the houses of quarrelsome neighbors, neither incurs any risk of evil as a result of the other's illwishes.
As a means of warding off impending sickness from cattle, and in order that they may thrive during the summer, the Transylvanian peasants place broken horseshoes in the animals' drinking-troughs on St. John's Day, June 24.
In Lincolnshire, not many years ago, there prevailed a custom of "charming" ash-trees by burying horseshoes under them. Twigs from a tree thus magically endowed were believed to be efficacious in curing cattle over which a shrewmouse had run, or which had been exposed to the glance of an evil eye. To effect a cure in such cases, it was only necessary to gently stroke the affected animal with one of these twigs.
Some years ago, a Golspie fisherman who owned a small boat was favored with an extraordinary run of luck in his fishing, and as a result of his good fortune was enabled to buy a larger vessel, selling the old one to a neighbor. From that time, however, his lucky star seemed to wane, and good "catches" were infrequent. Casting about in his mind for the reason of this, he bethought him of a stallion's shoe which was fastened inside his former boat, and which had been given him by a "wise person." But both boat and horseshoe were now in the hands of his neighbor, who maintained with reason that the lucky token was now his property, as he had purchased "the boat and its gear." And ever thereafter the disconsolate fisherman attributed his lack of success in that season to his own folly in having parted with the stallion's shoe.
The horse-shoe figures often in traditions of the sea as a protection to sailors. When the ghostly ship of the Flying Dutchman meets another vessel, some of its uncanny crew approach the latter in a boat and beg them to take charge of a packet of letters.
These letters must be nailed to the mast, else some misfortune will overtake the ship; especially if there be no Bible on board, nor any horse-shoe fastened to the foremast.
In the month of September, 1825, lightning struck a brigantine which lay at anchor in the Bay of Armiso, in the Adriatic. A sailor was killed by the bolt, and tradition says that on one of his hips was seen the perfect representation of a horse-shoe, a counterpart of one nailed to the vessel's foremast in accordance with the custom in vogue on the Mediterranean.
The same custom is common in German inland waters, as, for example, on the river craft which ply on the Elbe below Hamburg, and on those which navigate the Trave, at Lubec. On the latter vessels horse-shoes are usually fastened to the stern-post, instead of to the mast.
In a German work, entitled "Seespuk," by P. G. Heims, page 138, the writer remarks that, among seafaring people, the old pagan emblem, the horse-shoe, whose talismanic origin is so closely associated with horse-sacrifice and the use of horse-flesh as food among the heathen nations of the North, is even now the most powerful safeguard aboard ship against lightning and the powers of evil.
There are comparatively few small vessels laden with wood, fruit, vegetables, or other merchandise, sailing between Baltic Sea ports, upon whose foremast, or elsewhere upon deck, horse-shoes are not nailed.
Indeed, continues the same writer, this symbol has a notable significance in German art as well, a fact attributable less to its graceful curving shape than to the deeply rooted superstitions, relics of barbaric times, which yet cling to it.
Whether we regard the horse-shoe as a symbol of Wodan, the chief deity of the northern nations, as deriving magical power from its half-moon shape, as a product of supernatural skill in dealing with iron and fire, or as appertaining to the favorite sacrificial animal of antiquity, the pagan source of its superstitious use is equally evident.
The horse-shoe, whether as an amulet or as a sign of good luck, has nothing to do with the Christian religion. In either case it is a wholly superstitious symbol, and savors of paganism; it is in fact an inheritance from our heathen ancestors, a barbaric token, unworthy even to be named in connection with the sacred cross. Yet throughout many centuries it has captivated the popular fancy, and its emblematic use appears to be as firmly established to-day as ever in many parts of the world.
It is popularly believed that the chance finding of a horse-shoe greatly enhances its magical power; and it is claimed, moreover, by some writers, to be an axiom in folk-lore that talismanic objects thrust upon one's notice, as it were, are direct gifts from the goddess Fortune, and hence possessed of a special value for the finder. Such a notion is as clearly of pagan origin as the custom of bowing to the new moon, or of fixing representations of horses' heads upon the gables of houses in order to terrify wandering spirits of evil.
In "Curiosities of Popular Customs," by William S. Walsh (p. 665, 1898), it is stated that the Northern peoples were wont to offer sacrifices to Wodan after the harvest, and that the little cakes still baked on St. Martin's Day, November 11, throughout Germany, are shaped like a horn or horse-shoe, which was a token of the pagan god. Although not susceptible of proof, it seems highly probable that we have here another relic of idolatry. It is a point worthy of note, moreover, that Wodan was not only an all-powerful deity, corresponding to the Greek Zeus and Roman Jupiter, but that he was also a great magician, and hence quite naturally the horse-shoe, as one of his symbols, inherits magical attributes.
In Tuscany a horse-shoe when found is placed in a small red bag with some hay, which the Tuscans consider also a luck-bringing article, and the twofold charm is kept in its owner's bed.
Dr. Robert James, an English physician of the eighteenth century, and the inventor of a well-known feverpowder, ascribed his success in acquiring a fortune to his good luck in having once found a horse-shoe on Westminster Bridge. The sincerity of his faith was attested by the adoption of the horse-shoe as his family crest.
Brand quotes from John Bell's MS. " Discourse on Witchcraft" (1705) as follows:--
Guard against devilish charms for Men or Beasts. There are many sorceries practiced in our day, against which I would on this occasion bear my testimony, and do therefore seriously ask you, what is it you mean by your observation of Times and Seasons as lucky or unlucky? What mean you by your many Spells, Verses, Words, so often repeated, said fasting or going backward? How mean you to have success by carrying about with you certain Herbs, Plants, and branches of Trees? Why is it that, fearing certain events, you do use such superstitious means to prevent them, by laying bits of Timber at Doors, carrying a Bible merely for a Charm, without any farther use of it? What intend ye by opposing Witchcraft to Witchcraft, in such sort that, when ye suppose one to be bewitched, ye endeavour his Relief by Burnings, Bottles, Horse-shoes, and such like magical ceremonies?
In some Roman Catholic countries the priests are wont to brand cows and pigs on the forehead with the mark of a horse-shoe, to insure them against disease. It was, moreover, an old Scotch superstition, or freet, to pass a horse-shoe thrice beneath the belly and over the back of a cow that was considered elf-shot.
Among the Wendish inhabitants of the Spreewald, in North Germany, the lucky finder of a horse-shoe is careful not to tell any neighbor of his good fortune, but proceeds at once to fasten the shoe over the door of his house, or on the threshold, with three nails, and by three blows of a hammer, so that evil spirits may not enter.
We have seen that a horse-shoe picked up on the road is often prized as no mean acquisition by the finder thereof. It may not be out of place to give here a literal translation of a spell for the protection of a horse's hoof when a shoe has been lost. The original appeared in Mone's "Anzeiger" in 1834, and is written in the dialect known as "Middle High German," which was in vogue from the twelfth to the sixteenth centuries:--
When a horse has lost one of its iron shoes, take a breadknife and incise the hoof at the edge from one heel to the other, and lay the knife crosswise on the sole and say: "I command thee, hoof and horn, that thou breakest as little as God the Lord broke his Word, when he created heaven and earth." And thou shalt say these words three hours in succession, and five Paternosters and five Ave Marias to the praise of the Virgin. Then the horse will not walk lame until thou happenest to reach a smithy.
The Germans have a saying in regard to a young girl who has been led astray,-- "She has lost a horseshoe." This saying has been associated with the shoe as a symbol of marriage, an idea found both in the northern and Indian mythologies. But the phrase has been also thought to refer to the horse-shoe shaped gloria which crowns the head of the Virgin, the horse-shoe thus becoming the symbol of maidenly chastity. Again, it has been suggested, in reference to the same phrase, that the horse-shoe is a symbol of the V (or first letter of the word Virgo), which is used in church records to designate the unmarried state, just as the word "spinster" is used in legal documents.
The ancient Irish were wont to hang up in their houses the feet and legs of their deceased steeds, setting an especial value upon the hoofs; and with the Chinese of to-day a horse's hoof hung up indoors is supposed to have the same protective influence over a dwelling that a horse-shoe has elsewhere. In southwestern Germany it is still a common practice to nail a hoof over the stable-door; and in the Netherlands a horse's foot placed in a stable is thought to keep the horses from being bewitched.
Burton, in his "Anatomy of Melancholy," admits a belief in the virtues of a ring made from the hoof of the right foot of an ass, when carried about as an amulet.
Occasionally, though rarely, the horse-shoe is thought to have been employed by the witches themselves in furtherance of their mischievous designs.
In the "Revue des traditions populaires," vol. ii. 1887, an anecdote is related of a veteran Polish cavalryman who had served under Napoleon I. While bivouacking with a detachment of lancers in a village of eastern Prussia, he and several others lodged in the house of an old peasant woman, and their horses were accommodated in her barn. It was shortly noticed that the animals appeared depressed and refused the hay and grain provided for them, whereupon the soldiers concluded that they were under some spell and began a search for the cause. They soon found an old horseshoe with three nails remaining in it, and one of these was quickly driven out with a hammer. Instantly the horses began to snort and exhibited signs of restlessness. On the removal of the second nail they held up their I-leads proudly, and when the third nail was hammered out they fell upon their provender and devoured it voraciously. The cavalrymen were now convinced that their horses had been the victims of some deviltry at the hands of their hostess, whom they believed to be a sorceress. Before their departure, therefore, they gave her a good beating with their sabre scabbards to teach her not to practice her nefarious arts upon the horses of honest people.
--Dutch proverb.
Throughout Germany the belief obtains that a horseshoe found on the road, and nailed on the threshold of a house with the points directed outward, is a mighty protection not only against hags and fiends, but also against fire and lightning; but, reversed, it brings misfortune. In eastern Pennsylvania, however, even in recent times, the horse-shoe is often placed with the prongs pointing inward, so that the luck may be spilled into the house. The horse-shoe retains its potency as a charm on the sea as well as on land, and it has long been a practice among sailors to nail this favorite amulet against the mast of a vessel, whether fishing-boat or large sea-going craft, as a protection against the Evil One. The shoe of a "wraith-horse," the mythical off spring of a water-stallion, is especially esteemed by Scotch mariners for this purpose.
In Bohemia only exists the superstition exactly opposite to that elsewhere prevalent, namely, that whoever picks up a horse-shoe thereby ipso facto picks up ill-luck for himself,--a notable example in folk-lore of the exception which proves the rule. The Bohemians, however, believe a nailed-up horse-shoe to be a cure for lunacy.
As a general rule, the degree of luck pertaining to a horse-shoe found by chance has been thought to depend on the number of nails remaining in it: the more nails the more luck.
In Northumberland the holes free of nails are carefully counted, as these indicate, presumably in years, how soon the finder of the shoe may expect to be married. The peasants of northern Portugal prefer mule-shoes having an uneven number of nail-holes, as counteractives of the evil influences of the dreaded, omnipresent witches known as the Bruxas.
In Derbyshire it is customary to drive a horseshoe, prongs upward, between two flagstones near the door of a dwelling. This position is sometimes explained by saying that, so placed, the luck cannot spill out.
In a short poem called "The Lucky Horse-Shoe," by James T. Fields, an amusing account is given of a farmer who picked up an old horse-shoe from the road, and nailed it upon the door of his barn with the prongs downward. But, far from bringing him luck, Fortune thereafter frowned upon him; his hay crop failed, a drought blighted his vegetables, and his hens refused to lay.
The good farmer, discouraged and perplexed, confided his woes to the sympathetic ear of an aged wayfarer who chanced to pass by, relating how misfortunes had pursued him since he had fastened up the old horse-shoe.
The stranger asked to see the shoe;
The farmer brought it into view;
But when the old man raised his head,
He laughed outright and quickly said:
"No wonder skies upon you frown,
You've nailed the horse-shoe upside down;
Just turn it round, and soon you'll see
How you and Fortune will agree."
The farmer profited by the friendly suggestion and reversed his luck-token, whereupon the capricious goddess fairly beamed upon him. His barn was soon filled with hay, his storehouses were packed with the kindly fruits of the earth, while his wife presented him with twins.
Farmers may well take heed how they nail up horseshoes over the doors of their barns. To obtain the best results, it would seem advisable to place a pair of these useful articles on each farm building, one with the points upward, the other reversed; for in this way they may not only hope to win Fortune's smiles, but also to keep all witches and unfriendly spirits at a respectful distance.
In an interesting story for children in "St. Nicholas," April, 1897, by Rudolph F. Bunner, entitled "The Horse-Shoe of Luck," the writer introduces Luck in the character and garb of a wandering clown or jester, mounted upon a white horse. This jovial traveler seeks a night's lodging at a wayside farmhouse, and when he has almost reached its hospitable door, his steed casts a shoe, which the farmer hastens to pick up and carefully hangs on a hook above the door. Luck proved to be a most amusing fellow, and after supper he entertained the children of the household in a royal manner, showing them, among other things, how to drop china and glass without breaking them, and how to tumble down stairs without getting hurt. So the evening passed merrily enough, and all retired for the night in a happy frame of mind. Early in the morning the farmer was awakened by the splash of raindrops upon his face, and, hastily arising, he discovered that the roof had sprung a leak, and that his guest had unceremoniously departed. Nettled by such conduct, the farmer and his family hastened in pursuit of the fleeing stranger, guided by the hoof-prints of his white horse; and when they had overtaken him, the farmer reproached his late guest for having left his house so abruptly. Whereupon Luck repied: "I left you, not because you could not even nail my horse-shoe over your door, but hung it upside down, so the luck ran out at the ends, but because of your own mistake. You trusted to me; you trusted to Luck. Ah ha! "
In the northernmost districts of Scotland exists a belief that if the first shoe put on the foot of a stallion be hung on the byre door, no harm will come near the cows; and in the same region, if a horse-shoe be placed between the houses of quarrelsome neighbors, neither incurs any risk of evil as a result of the other's illwishes.
As a means of warding off impending sickness from cattle, and in order that they may thrive during the summer, the Transylvanian peasants place broken horseshoes in the animals' drinking-troughs on St. John's Day, June 24.
In Lincolnshire, not many years ago, there prevailed a custom of "charming" ash-trees by burying horseshoes under them. Twigs from a tree thus magically endowed were believed to be efficacious in curing cattle over which a shrewmouse had run, or which had been exposed to the glance of an evil eye. To effect a cure in such cases, it was only necessary to gently stroke the affected animal with one of these twigs.
Some years ago, a Golspie fisherman who owned a small boat was favored with an extraordinary run of luck in his fishing, and as a result of his good fortune was enabled to buy a larger vessel, selling the old one to a neighbor. From that time, however, his lucky star seemed to wane, and good "catches" were infrequent. Casting about in his mind for the reason of this, he bethought him of a stallion's shoe which was fastened inside his former boat, and which had been given him by a "wise person." But both boat and horseshoe were now in the hands of his neighbor, who maintained with reason that the lucky token was now his property, as he had purchased "the boat and its gear." And ever thereafter the disconsolate fisherman attributed his lack of success in that season to his own folly in having parted with the stallion's shoe.
The horse-shoe figures often in traditions of the sea as a protection to sailors. When the ghostly ship of the Flying Dutchman meets another vessel, some of its uncanny crew approach the latter in a boat and beg them to take charge of a packet of letters.
These letters must be nailed to the mast, else some misfortune will overtake the ship; especially if there be no Bible on board, nor any horse-shoe fastened to the foremast.
In the month of September, 1825, lightning struck a brigantine which lay at anchor in the Bay of Armiso, in the Adriatic. A sailor was killed by the bolt, and tradition says that on one of his hips was seen the perfect representation of a horse-shoe, a counterpart of one nailed to the vessel's foremast in accordance with the custom in vogue on the Mediterranean.
The same custom is common in German inland waters, as, for example, on the river craft which ply on the Elbe below Hamburg, and on those which navigate the Trave, at Lubec. On the latter vessels horse-shoes are usually fastened to the stern-post, instead of to the mast.
In a German work, entitled "Seespuk," by P. G. Heims, page 138, the writer remarks that, among seafaring people, the old pagan emblem, the horse-shoe, whose talismanic origin is so closely associated with horse-sacrifice and the use of horse-flesh as food among the heathen nations of the North, is even now the most powerful safeguard aboard ship against lightning and the powers of evil.
There are comparatively few small vessels laden with wood, fruit, vegetables, or other merchandise, sailing between Baltic Sea ports, upon whose foremast, or elsewhere upon deck, horse-shoes are not nailed.
Indeed, continues the same writer, this symbol has a notable significance in German art as well, a fact attributable less to its graceful curving shape than to the deeply rooted superstitions, relics of barbaric times, which yet cling to it.
Whether we regard the horse-shoe as a symbol of Wodan, the chief deity of the northern nations, as deriving magical power from its half-moon shape, as a product of supernatural skill in dealing with iron and fire, or as appertaining to the favorite sacrificial animal of antiquity, the pagan source of its superstitious use is equally evident.
The horse-shoe, whether as an amulet or as a sign of good luck, has nothing to do with the Christian religion. In either case it is a wholly superstitious symbol, and savors of paganism; it is in fact an inheritance from our heathen ancestors, a barbaric token, unworthy even to be named in connection with the sacred cross. Yet throughout many centuries it has captivated the popular fancy, and its emblematic use appears to be as firmly established to-day as ever in many parts of the world.
It is popularly believed that the chance finding of a horse-shoe greatly enhances its magical power; and it is claimed, moreover, by some writers, to be an axiom in folk-lore that talismanic objects thrust upon one's notice, as it were, are direct gifts from the goddess Fortune, and hence possessed of a special value for the finder. Such a notion is as clearly of pagan origin as the custom of bowing to the new moon, or of fixing representations of horses' heads upon the gables of houses in order to terrify wandering spirits of evil.
In "Curiosities of Popular Customs," by William S. Walsh (p. 665, 1898), it is stated that the Northern peoples were wont to offer sacrifices to Wodan after the harvest, and that the little cakes still baked on St. Martin's Day, November 11, throughout Germany, are shaped like a horn or horse-shoe, which was a token of the pagan god. Although not susceptible of proof, it seems highly probable that we have here another relic of idolatry. It is a point worthy of note, moreover, that Wodan was not only an all-powerful deity, corresponding to the Greek Zeus and Roman Jupiter, but that he was also a great magician, and hence quite naturally the horse-shoe, as one of his symbols, inherits magical attributes.
In Tuscany a horse-shoe when found is placed in a small red bag with some hay, which the Tuscans consider also a luck-bringing article, and the twofold charm is kept in its owner's bed.
Dr. Robert James, an English physician of the eighteenth century, and the inventor of a well-known feverpowder, ascribed his success in acquiring a fortune to his good luck in having once found a horse-shoe on Westminster Bridge. The sincerity of his faith was attested by the adoption of the horse-shoe as his family crest.
Brand quotes from John Bell's MS. " Discourse on Witchcraft" (1705) as follows:--
Guard against devilish charms for Men or Beasts. There are many sorceries practiced in our day, against which I would on this occasion bear my testimony, and do therefore seriously ask you, what is it you mean by your observation of Times and Seasons as lucky or unlucky? What mean you by your many Spells, Verses, Words, so often repeated, said fasting or going backward? How mean you to have success by carrying about with you certain Herbs, Plants, and branches of Trees? Why is it that, fearing certain events, you do use such superstitious means to prevent them, by laying bits of Timber at Doors, carrying a Bible merely for a Charm, without any farther use of it? What intend ye by opposing Witchcraft to Witchcraft, in such sort that, when ye suppose one to be bewitched, ye endeavour his Relief by Burnings, Bottles, Horse-shoes, and such like magical ceremonies?
In some Roman Catholic countries the priests are wont to brand cows and pigs on the forehead with the mark of a horse-shoe, to insure them against disease. It was, moreover, an old Scotch superstition, or freet, to pass a horse-shoe thrice beneath the belly and over the back of a cow that was considered elf-shot.
Among the Wendish inhabitants of the Spreewald, in North Germany, the lucky finder of a horse-shoe is careful not to tell any neighbor of his good fortune, but proceeds at once to fasten the shoe over the door of his house, or on the threshold, with three nails, and by three blows of a hammer, so that evil spirits may not enter.
We have seen that a horse-shoe picked up on the road is often prized as no mean acquisition by the finder thereof. It may not be out of place to give here a literal translation of a spell for the protection of a horse's hoof when a shoe has been lost. The original appeared in Mone's "Anzeiger" in 1834, and is written in the dialect known as "Middle High German," which was in vogue from the twelfth to the sixteenth centuries:--
When a horse has lost one of its iron shoes, take a breadknife and incise the hoof at the edge from one heel to the other, and lay the knife crosswise on the sole and say: "I command thee, hoof and horn, that thou breakest as little as God the Lord broke his Word, when he created heaven and earth." And thou shalt say these words three hours in succession, and five Paternosters and five Ave Marias to the praise of the Virgin. Then the horse will not walk lame until thou happenest to reach a smithy.
The Germans have a saying in regard to a young girl who has been led astray,-- "She has lost a horseshoe." This saying has been associated with the shoe as a symbol of marriage, an idea found both in the northern and Indian mythologies. But the phrase has been also thought to refer to the horse-shoe shaped gloria which crowns the head of the Virgin, the horse-shoe thus becoming the symbol of maidenly chastity. Again, it has been suggested, in reference to the same phrase, that the horse-shoe is a symbol of the V (or first letter of the word Virgo), which is used in church records to designate the unmarried state, just as the word "spinster" is used in legal documents.
The ancient Irish were wont to hang up in their houses the feet and legs of their deceased steeds, setting an especial value upon the hoofs; and with the Chinese of to-day a horse's hoof hung up indoors is supposed to have the same protective influence over a dwelling that a horse-shoe has elsewhere. In southwestern Germany it is still a common practice to nail a hoof over the stable-door; and in the Netherlands a horse's foot placed in a stable is thought to keep the horses from being bewitched.
Burton, in his "Anatomy of Melancholy," admits a belief in the virtues of a ring made from the hoof of the right foot of an ass, when carried about as an amulet.
Occasionally, though rarely, the horse-shoe is thought to have been employed by the witches themselves in furtherance of their mischievous designs.
In the "Revue des traditions populaires," vol. ii. 1887, an anecdote is related of a veteran Polish cavalryman who had served under Napoleon I. While bivouacking with a detachment of lancers in a village of eastern Prussia, he and several others lodged in the house of an old peasant woman, and their horses were accommodated in her barn. It was shortly noticed that the animals appeared depressed and refused the hay and grain provided for them, whereupon the soldiers concluded that they were under some spell and began a search for the cause. They soon found an old horseshoe with three nails remaining in it, and one of these was quickly driven out with a hammer. Instantly the horses began to snort and exhibited signs of restlessness. On the removal of the second nail they held up their I-leads proudly, and when the third nail was hammered out they fell upon their provender and devoured it voraciously. The cavalrymen were now convinced that their horses had been the victims of some deviltry at the hands of their hostess, whom they believed to be a sorceress. Before their departure, therefore, they gave her a good beating with their sabre scabbards to teach her not to practice her nefarious arts upon the horses of honest people.
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THE HORSE-SHOE AS A PHALLIC SYMBOL
It will suffice merely to allude to the theory of the phallic origin of the superstitious use of the horse-shoe, a branch of our subject capable of much elaboration. The horse-shoe is still the conventional figure for the yoni (a phallic emblem) in modern Hindu temples. This theory is discussed in "Ancient Faiths embodied in Ancient Names," by Thomas Inman, M. D., London, 1873; and in "A Discourse on the Worship of Priapus," by Richard Payne Knight, Esq., London, 1865.
Phallic ornaments are of great antiquity, and amulets of this character have been found in the earliest Etruscan tombs. Specimens are also to be seen in the various Italian museums.
The yoni symbol guards the entrances of ancient temples in Mexico and Peru, as well as in India.
Ornate Mexican sacred stones of the horse-shoe form, relics of the ancient Maya tribes, are classed in the National Museum at Washington, D. C., as representative of fecundity and nature-worship; and horse-shoe symbols are found in Aztec manuscripts relating to agriculture as signs of abundance.
Phallic charms are seen above the entrances of houses and over tent-doors in north Africa to avert the evil eye, and to bring health and good fortune. Much information on this subject may be found in a chapter on serpent and phallic worship in "Rivers of Life," by Major General J. G. R. Forlong, London, 1883; and in an essay on "Phallism in Ancient Religions," by C. Staniford Wake, 1888.
On a curious tablet found near a prehistoric mound in the vicinity of the village of Cahokia, Saint Clair County, Illinois, are portrayed human faces with bird-like profiles, diamond-shaped eyes, and low foreheads surmounted by ornamental crowns or head-dresses. The mouths are wide open, and in front of them are represented symbols having a well-defined horse-shoe form. These symbols, although probably of phallic origin, are thought to signify the principle of life residing in the breath, just as in India the horse-shoe is an emblem of the soul.
Phallic ornaments are of great antiquity, and amulets of this character have been found in the earliest Etruscan tombs. Specimens are also to be seen in the various Italian museums.
The yoni symbol guards the entrances of ancient temples in Mexico and Peru, as well as in India.
Ornate Mexican sacred stones of the horse-shoe form, relics of the ancient Maya tribes, are classed in the National Museum at Washington, D. C., as representative of fecundity and nature-worship; and horse-shoe symbols are found in Aztec manuscripts relating to agriculture as signs of abundance.
Phallic charms are seen above the entrances of houses and over tent-doors in north Africa to avert the evil eye, and to bring health and good fortune. Much information on this subject may be found in a chapter on serpent and phallic worship in "Rivers of Life," by Major General J. G. R. Forlong, London, 1883; and in an essay on "Phallism in Ancient Religions," by C. Staniford Wake, 1888.
On a curious tablet found near a prehistoric mound in the vicinity of the village of Cahokia, Saint Clair County, Illinois, are portrayed human faces with bird-like profiles, diamond-shaped eyes, and low foreheads surmounted by ornamental crowns or head-dresses. The mouths are wide open, and in front of them are represented symbols having a well-defined horse-shoe form. These symbols, although probably of phallic origin, are thought to signify the principle of life residing in the breath, just as in India the horse-shoe is an emblem of the soul.
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THE HORSE-SHOE AS A SYMBOL ON TAVERN SIGN-BOARDS
The horse-shoe, associated usually with some other symbol, is not infrequently seen displayed on the signs of British taverns. There is a well-known hostelry bearing this sign and name on Tottenham Court Road in London. To quote from "The History of Signboards," by Jacob Larwood and John Camden Hot ten:--
The Three Horse-shoes are not uncommon, and the single shoe may be met with in many combinations, arising from the old belief in its lucky influences. Thus the Horse and Horse-Shoe was the sign of William Warden at Dover, as appears from his token. The Sun and Horse-Shoe is still a public-house sign in Great Tichfield Street, and the Magpie and Horse-Shoe may be seen carved in Fetter Lane; the magpie is perched within the horse-shoe, a bunch of grapes being suspended from it. The Horns and Horse-shoe is represented on the token of William Grainge, in Gutter Lane, 1666, a horse-shoe within a pair of antlers. The Hoop and Horseshoe on Tower Hill was formerly called the Horse-shoe.
Miller Christy, in his book "The Trade Signs of Essex," says that horse-shoe signs probably owe their origin partly to the fact that this symbol appears on the arms of the Farriers' Company, and partly to the old practice of fastening a horse-shoe upon the stable-door or elsewhere as a witch-scarer. In the county of Essex the horse-shoe may be seen upon the signs of beerhouses at Great Parndon, Braintree, Waltham Abbey, and High Ongar.
There was formerly more than one noted inn in London known as the Half-Moon, and a street of that name, leading from Piccadilly, is well known. The name and symbol of the full moon, however, seldom appear on sign-boards. Butler asks in "Hudibras:"--
Tell me, but what's the nat'ral cause,
Why on a sign no painter draws
The full moon, but the half?
The reason is doubtless because of the favorable auspices associated from time immemorial with the crescent moon.
One need hardly accept as plausible the explanation sometimes offered, namely, that the half-moon tavern symbol is a silent invitation to eat and drink to one's full capacity; a hint, as it were, to follow the crescent moon's example and "get full."
The Three Horse-shoes are not uncommon, and the single shoe may be met with in many combinations, arising from the old belief in its lucky influences. Thus the Horse and Horse-Shoe was the sign of William Warden at Dover, as appears from his token. The Sun and Horse-Shoe is still a public-house sign in Great Tichfield Street, and the Magpie and Horse-Shoe may be seen carved in Fetter Lane; the magpie is perched within the horse-shoe, a bunch of grapes being suspended from it. The Horns and Horse-shoe is represented on the token of William Grainge, in Gutter Lane, 1666, a horse-shoe within a pair of antlers. The Hoop and Horseshoe on Tower Hill was formerly called the Horse-shoe.
Miller Christy, in his book "The Trade Signs of Essex," says that horse-shoe signs probably owe their origin partly to the fact that this symbol appears on the arms of the Farriers' Company, and partly to the old practice of fastening a horse-shoe upon the stable-door or elsewhere as a witch-scarer. In the county of Essex the horse-shoe may be seen upon the signs of beerhouses at Great Parndon, Braintree, Waltham Abbey, and High Ongar.
There was formerly more than one noted inn in London known as the Half-Moon, and a street of that name, leading from Piccadilly, is well known. The name and symbol of the full moon, however, seldom appear on sign-boards. Butler asks in "Hudibras:"--
Tell me, but what's the nat'ral cause,
Why on a sign no painter draws
The full moon, but the half?
The reason is doubtless because of the favorable auspices associated from time immemorial with the crescent moon.
One need hardly accept as plausible the explanation sometimes offered, namely, that the half-moon tavern symbol is a silent invitation to eat and drink to one's full capacity; a hint, as it were, to follow the crescent moon's example and "get full."
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HORSE-SHOES ON CHURCH-DOORS
The origin of the horse-shoe as a charm has been ascribed to its resemblance to the metallic aureole or meniscus formerly placed over the heads of images of patron saints in churches, and which is also represented in ancient pictures of the Virgin.
This aureole, or more properly nimbus, was probably of pagan origin, for in early times circles of stars frequently ornamented the heads of statues of the gods, as emblematic of divinity. In speaking of certain ancient relics found in Ireland, Mr. W. G. WoodMartin ("Pagan Ireland," p. 492) says:--
Thin crescentic plates, with the extremities terminating in flat circular disks, are the ornaments most frequently discovered. In form they are identical with the half-moon-shaped ornaments in use among the Greeks and Romans, and with the nimbi on carvings of the Byzantine school; and they differ but little from the ring which now is conventionally placed around the head of a saint. Thus this glory can be traced back to pagandom. The crescentic plate appears to have been primarily the badge of some distinguished person, a chief or king; then it became the emblem of one considered to be a very holy person, for in Ireland, in the early days of Christianity, the saints were derived principally from the aristocracy.
In the collection of the Royal Irish Academy is a golden tiara or diadem, said to have been found in County Clare. This relic, which measures about a foot in height and the same in breadth, is thought to have been a head-dress of some pagan or early Christian chieftain.
In the earlier years of the church these crescent symbols were avoided as savoring of heathenism; but without any thought of its significance, it became customary in the Middle Ages to place a circular brass plate upon the heads of statues as a protection from snow or rain. Hence arose the practice of similarly adorning images and paintings in churches.
In later times these crescent-shaped pieces of metal were sometimes nailed up at the entrance of churches, and so came to be regarded as protective emblems. The horse-shoe was an easily available substitute for the halo or glory, and so was often placed upon the doors of churches, especially in the southwest of England, as it was generally believed in olden times that evil spirits could enter even consecrated edifices. Aubrey, in his "Miscellanies," mentions having seen under the porch of Staninfield Church, in Suffolk, an inscription with the device of a horse-shoe, intended to exclude witches, and he naively remarks that one would imagine holy water amply sufficient for the purpose.
On the south door of the parish church of Ashby-Foville, in Leicestershire, were formerly two ancient horse-shoes of great size, one of them measuring 16 by 11-1/2 inches, or more than twice as large as an average modern shoe.
As it does not seem likely that such shoes were made to fit horses' feet, in the absence of traditional information regarding them, it appears probable that they were intended solely to bar the ingress of witches.
In St. Martin's Church, Canterbury, the oldest in England, the sacristan shows visitors the site of an early English door on the south side, and a Norman doorway in the middle of the northern wall, both long since blocked up. Infants to be baptized were formerly brought into the church by the south entrance, and after the ceremony the north door was thrown open to permit the egress of evil spirits expelled by baptism. For in early times demons were believed to come from the north, where the habitations of the Norse gods were also thought to be. The pagans, when worshiping their deities, looked towards the north; but Christians engaged in prayer turned their faces eastward and lifted up their hands; they regarded the north as "the unblessed heathen quarter." The unexplored Arctic regions, where night reigned much of the time, were thought to belong especially to the Devil, or spirit of darkness; and the same idea is conveyed in several passages of Holy Scripture, as, for example, in Jeremiah iv. 6: "I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction."
In the Middle Ages the rose-windows in the north and south transepts of Lincoln Minster were called the two eyes of the cathedral, the former being known as the Dean's Eye, ever on the watch against the attacks of Lucifer, who had his abode "in the sides of the north" (Isaiah xiv. 13); while the window in the south transept was called the Bishop's Eye, "courting the influence of the Holy Spirit, of which the south wind was a type." Apropos of evil spirits entering consecrated places, there is a quaint legend about a little stone figure yclept the Lincoln Imp, which is to be seen perched upon a corbel of a column on the north side of the Angel Choir of the same cathedral. According to one version of the legend, when Bishop Remigius came to Lincoln, in the year after the Norway Conquest, the Devil was sorely tried; for until that time he had had undisturbed control of affairs in the town and neighborhood. In vain the Evil One sought to hinder the completion of the church, and finally he waylaid the bishop outside the building and attempted to kill him. But the good bishop at this critical time called upon the Blessed Virgin Mary for assistance, and she sent a tempest of wind which so buffeted and distracted the Devil that he sought refuge inside the church, not daring to venture out because of the fierce wind, which prevails a good part of the time even nowadays, and which is still awaiting the Devil's reappearance!
The Bishop, we know, died long ago;
The wind still waits, nor will he go
Till he has a chance of beating his foe;
But the Devil hopp'd up without a limp,
And at once took shape as the Lincoln Imp.
And there he sits atop the column,
And grins at the people who gaze so solemn.
Moreover, he mocks at the wind below,
And says, "You may wait till doomsday, O!"
In southern Germany, Bavaria, and Tyrol, the horseshoe symbol is to be seen on church-doors, as an emblem of St. Leonard, the guardian and protector of horses and travelers; and it is usually associated with some romantic legend, having oftentimes a historic basis. Traditions relating to horse-shoes on churchdoors are, indeed, plentiful in the popular literature of Germany, and a few examples are given later. St. Leonard's Day, November 6, had its special observances. The peasants were wont to bring their horses to some church dedicated to that worthy, and ride them thrice around the sacred building, a procedure which was believed to be highly auspicious. It was, moreover, customary for noblemen, before starting on an equestrian journey, to fasten a horse-shoe on the church-door as a votive offering to St. Leonard.
Especial honor is accorded to this saint on the day of his festival, at Fischhausen, a seaport village in northeastern Prussia. On that occasion the parish church is surrounded by farm wagons and other vehicles drawn by gayly decorated horses, for here the country people have a grand rendezvous; young women in holiday attire drive hither the cows, who have been brought from their summer quarters in the upland pastures, that they, too, may participate in the festivities. A religious service, largely attended by the peasants, is first held in the church, and then follow the outdoor exercises, of which a chief feature consists in driving the horses three times around the building at a rapid pace.
During the prevalence of a severe epizoötic in Würtemberg many years ago, the people removed the shoes from their horses' feet, and hung them on the walls of churches as propitiatory offerings. Various other iron implements, such as chain traces, were thus similarly displayed.
An ancient St. Leonard's Chapel, in the town of Laupheim, is encircled by an iron chain, which is said to have been forged from horse-shoes thus piously contributed. The largest church dedicated to this saint is at Tölz, in upper Bavaria, and its altar is likewise surrounded by an iron chain.
Pictures of St. Leonard are sometimes placed upon stable-doors to bring luck; he is usually represented as holding a pastoral staff, while on one side is seen a colt or filly, on the other a sick ox, and at his feet is a ewe lamb.
In northern Germany, St. George, as a successor of Wodan, is one of the special guardians and protectors of horses. On the festal day of this saint, April 23, the peasants gather in large numbers around some church dedicated to him, and their horses and vehicles, numbering sometimes many hundreds, are drawn up in a circle around the sanctuary. After the parish priest has delivered a sermon in the church, he comes to the door and blesses each horse separately as the animal is led past, meanwhile sprinkling him with holy water.
Then the young men mount their best horses and ride them three times at full speed around the church, shouting lustily meanwhile.
JŠhns remarks that this ceremony is doubtless a relic of some pagan rite, and that in many places a venerable tree, instead of a Christian church, is chosen as the place of rendezvous on St. George's Day. During the ride around the tree, an aged peasant standing in its shade throws upon each horse, as it passes, a little moist earth taken from about the roots of the sacred tree, and this insures the animal against sickness until the following spring, especially if some of the earth be placed in a bag and hung up in the stable.
As the hammer was Thor's emblem, so the horse-shoe has been thought to possess a certain mystic significance as a symbol of the heathen god Wodan; and it has been assumed that the ancient churches, upon whose doors horse-shoes are still to be seen, were built upon the sites of pagan temples dedicated to that deity. It has been argued, moreover, that the modern use of a horse-shoe as a talisman, and the placing of horses' heads on peasants' houses, are relics of heathendom, and have a mysterious affinity with the hoof-print legends of Teutonic mythology. Such a theory appears plausible enough in view of the fact that many of the superstitious customs and beliefs of modern times are known to have existed before the Christian era.
This aureole, or more properly nimbus, was probably of pagan origin, for in early times circles of stars frequently ornamented the heads of statues of the gods, as emblematic of divinity. In speaking of certain ancient relics found in Ireland, Mr. W. G. WoodMartin ("Pagan Ireland," p. 492) says:--
Thin crescentic plates, with the extremities terminating in flat circular disks, are the ornaments most frequently discovered. In form they are identical with the half-moon-shaped ornaments in use among the Greeks and Romans, and with the nimbi on carvings of the Byzantine school; and they differ but little from the ring which now is conventionally placed around the head of a saint. Thus this glory can be traced back to pagandom. The crescentic plate appears to have been primarily the badge of some distinguished person, a chief or king; then it became the emblem of one considered to be a very holy person, for in Ireland, in the early days of Christianity, the saints were derived principally from the aristocracy.
In the collection of the Royal Irish Academy is a golden tiara or diadem, said to have been found in County Clare. This relic, which measures about a foot in height and the same in breadth, is thought to have been a head-dress of some pagan or early Christian chieftain.
In the earlier years of the church these crescent symbols were avoided as savoring of heathenism; but without any thought of its significance, it became customary in the Middle Ages to place a circular brass plate upon the heads of statues as a protection from snow or rain. Hence arose the practice of similarly adorning images and paintings in churches.
In later times these crescent-shaped pieces of metal were sometimes nailed up at the entrance of churches, and so came to be regarded as protective emblems. The horse-shoe was an easily available substitute for the halo or glory, and so was often placed upon the doors of churches, especially in the southwest of England, as it was generally believed in olden times that evil spirits could enter even consecrated edifices. Aubrey, in his "Miscellanies," mentions having seen under the porch of Staninfield Church, in Suffolk, an inscription with the device of a horse-shoe, intended to exclude witches, and he naively remarks that one would imagine holy water amply sufficient for the purpose.
On the south door of the parish church of Ashby-Foville, in Leicestershire, were formerly two ancient horse-shoes of great size, one of them measuring 16 by 11-1/2 inches, or more than twice as large as an average modern shoe.
As it does not seem likely that such shoes were made to fit horses' feet, in the absence of traditional information regarding them, it appears probable that they were intended solely to bar the ingress of witches.
In St. Martin's Church, Canterbury, the oldest in England, the sacristan shows visitors the site of an early English door on the south side, and a Norman doorway in the middle of the northern wall, both long since blocked up. Infants to be baptized were formerly brought into the church by the south entrance, and after the ceremony the north door was thrown open to permit the egress of evil spirits expelled by baptism. For in early times demons were believed to come from the north, where the habitations of the Norse gods were also thought to be. The pagans, when worshiping their deities, looked towards the north; but Christians engaged in prayer turned their faces eastward and lifted up their hands; they regarded the north as "the unblessed heathen quarter." The unexplored Arctic regions, where night reigned much of the time, were thought to belong especially to the Devil, or spirit of darkness; and the same idea is conveyed in several passages of Holy Scripture, as, for example, in Jeremiah iv. 6: "I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction."
In the Middle Ages the rose-windows in the north and south transepts of Lincoln Minster were called the two eyes of the cathedral, the former being known as the Dean's Eye, ever on the watch against the attacks of Lucifer, who had his abode "in the sides of the north" (Isaiah xiv. 13); while the window in the south transept was called the Bishop's Eye, "courting the influence of the Holy Spirit, of which the south wind was a type." Apropos of evil spirits entering consecrated places, there is a quaint legend about a little stone figure yclept the Lincoln Imp, which is to be seen perched upon a corbel of a column on the north side of the Angel Choir of the same cathedral. According to one version of the legend, when Bishop Remigius came to Lincoln, in the year after the Norway Conquest, the Devil was sorely tried; for until that time he had had undisturbed control of affairs in the town and neighborhood. In vain the Evil One sought to hinder the completion of the church, and finally he waylaid the bishop outside the building and attempted to kill him. But the good bishop at this critical time called upon the Blessed Virgin Mary for assistance, and she sent a tempest of wind which so buffeted and distracted the Devil that he sought refuge inside the church, not daring to venture out because of the fierce wind, which prevails a good part of the time even nowadays, and which is still awaiting the Devil's reappearance!
The Bishop, we know, died long ago;
The wind still waits, nor will he go
Till he has a chance of beating his foe;
But the Devil hopp'd up without a limp,
And at once took shape as the Lincoln Imp.
And there he sits atop the column,
And grins at the people who gaze so solemn.
Moreover, he mocks at the wind below,
And says, "You may wait till doomsday, O!"
In southern Germany, Bavaria, and Tyrol, the horseshoe symbol is to be seen on church-doors, as an emblem of St. Leonard, the guardian and protector of horses and travelers; and it is usually associated with some romantic legend, having oftentimes a historic basis. Traditions relating to horse-shoes on churchdoors are, indeed, plentiful in the popular literature of Germany, and a few examples are given later. St. Leonard's Day, November 6, had its special observances. The peasants were wont to bring their horses to some church dedicated to that worthy, and ride them thrice around the sacred building, a procedure which was believed to be highly auspicious. It was, moreover, customary for noblemen, before starting on an equestrian journey, to fasten a horse-shoe on the church-door as a votive offering to St. Leonard.
Especial honor is accorded to this saint on the day of his festival, at Fischhausen, a seaport village in northeastern Prussia. On that occasion the parish church is surrounded by farm wagons and other vehicles drawn by gayly decorated horses, for here the country people have a grand rendezvous; young women in holiday attire drive hither the cows, who have been brought from their summer quarters in the upland pastures, that they, too, may participate in the festivities. A religious service, largely attended by the peasants, is first held in the church, and then follow the outdoor exercises, of which a chief feature consists in driving the horses three times around the building at a rapid pace.
During the prevalence of a severe epizoötic in Würtemberg many years ago, the people removed the shoes from their horses' feet, and hung them on the walls of churches as propitiatory offerings. Various other iron implements, such as chain traces, were thus similarly displayed.
An ancient St. Leonard's Chapel, in the town of Laupheim, is encircled by an iron chain, which is said to have been forged from horse-shoes thus piously contributed. The largest church dedicated to this saint is at Tölz, in upper Bavaria, and its altar is likewise surrounded by an iron chain.
Pictures of St. Leonard are sometimes placed upon stable-doors to bring luck; he is usually represented as holding a pastoral staff, while on one side is seen a colt or filly, on the other a sick ox, and at his feet is a ewe lamb.
In northern Germany, St. George, as a successor of Wodan, is one of the special guardians and protectors of horses. On the festal day of this saint, April 23, the peasants gather in large numbers around some church dedicated to him, and their horses and vehicles, numbering sometimes many hundreds, are drawn up in a circle around the sanctuary. After the parish priest has delivered a sermon in the church, he comes to the door and blesses each horse separately as the animal is led past, meanwhile sprinkling him with holy water.
Then the young men mount their best horses and ride them three times at full speed around the church, shouting lustily meanwhile.
JŠhns remarks that this ceremony is doubtless a relic of some pagan rite, and that in many places a venerable tree, instead of a Christian church, is chosen as the place of rendezvous on St. George's Day. During the ride around the tree, an aged peasant standing in its shade throws upon each horse, as it passes, a little moist earth taken from about the roots of the sacred tree, and this insures the animal against sickness until the following spring, especially if some of the earth be placed in a bag and hung up in the stable.
As the hammer was Thor's emblem, so the horse-shoe has been thought to possess a certain mystic significance as a symbol of the heathen god Wodan; and it has been assumed that the ancient churches, upon whose doors horse-shoes are still to be seen, were built upon the sites of pagan temples dedicated to that deity. It has been argued, moreover, that the modern use of a horse-shoe as a talisman, and the placing of horses' heads on peasants' houses, are relics of heathendom, and have a mysterious affinity with the hoof-print legends of Teutonic mythology. Such a theory appears plausible enough in view of the fact that many of the superstitious customs and beliefs of modern times are known to have existed before the Christian era.
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♘ مدیریت انجمن اسب ایران ♞
HORSE-SHOE LEGENDARY LORE
1. Within recent years two horse-shoes were to be seen on the door of the parish church of Haccombe in Derbyshire. A romantic legend associated with these horse-shoes is the theme of a ballad supposed to have been written by a master of Exeter Grammar School in the early part of the nineteenth century. The ballad graphically describes a race for a wager between a certain Earl of Totnes, mounted on a Derbyshire roan, and one Sir Arthur Champernowne, on a fleet Barbary courser. The race was won by the earl, who thereupon rode straight to the door of Haccombe Church,
And there he fell on his knees and prayed,
And many an Ave Maria said;
Bread and money he gave to the poor,
And he nailed the roan's shoes to the chapel door.
2. In the traditionary lore of the Harz Mountains there is a weird tale of four horse-shoes, which for ages were to be seen on the door of a church in the suburbs of Klettenburg.
Once upon a time, so runs the story, a great drinking match was held on a Sunday morning at Elrich. The prize was a golden chain, and many knights assembled from near and far. The carousal lasted for some hours, until Count Ernest of Klettenburg, the only one who could still keep on his feet, exultantly claimed the golden chain, which he hung about his neck. Then, mounting his horse, he rode homeward, and while nearing Klettenburg he heard the strains of even-song in a church dedicated to St. Nicholas. Urging on his steed, he rode madly through the open door straight to the altar. Then, so runs the legend, the horse's four shoes fell off, and horse and rider sank down together out of sight. In memory of this wonderful event, the four horse-shoes were placed on the door of the church, and for many years were regarded with awe by the simple countryfolk.
3. In the construction of the Church of St. Stephen, at Tangermünde, in Prussian Saxony, a brick edifice of the fourteenth century, the members of two guilds, those of the blacksmiths and shoemakers, were of especial assistance; and in remembrance of this, a horse-shoe and an iron shoe-sole were built into the outer wall of the church. The former indicates that up to its level the blacksmiths had built the walls, and the latter shows that all the work above the horse-shoe was done by the shoemakers; such, at least, is the popular explanation, which may well be received cum grano salis.
4. In the parish church of Schwarzenstein, in east Prussia, hang two horse-shoes as reminders of the following tradition: In the village of Eichmedien, one mile from Rastenburg, lived formerly as tavern-keeper a woman, who had earned an unenviable notoriety by her practice of charging double the proper fees for board and lodging. Late one night, when several of her guests accused her of being a cheat, she asseverated her honesty by holding up her hand, and saying in the form of an oath: "If my score is not correct, may the Devil now jump on my back." The Evil One took the woman promptly at her word, transformed her into a mare, and rode her out of the village, laughing scornfully. At headlong speed he rode to a blacksmith's shop in Schwarzenstein, and demanded that his mare be shod at once. The blacksmith, routed out of his sleep, excused himself, pleading the lateness of the hour and the fact that there was no fire in his forge. The Devil insisted, however, and promised liberal payment if the work were done quickly. The blacksmith yielded at length, but had not proceeded far in shaping the shoes when the mare began to speak. "My cousin, don't you know me?" she said; "I am the tavern-keeper." Upon this the blacksmith was so horrified that neither threats nor entreaties could prevail to make him proceed with the shoeing, and before he had finished the third shoe a cock crowed, and immediately the spell was broken and the woman reassumed her own form. And to point the moral of this legend, and as a warning to cheats, the two horse-shoes which the smith had completed were nailed up in the village church at Schwarzenstein.
5. According to an old tradition, the Lapp king, Olaf Skötkonung (995-1030), wishing to become a Christian, asked his royal contemporary, Ethelred II. of England, to send him a teacher. In response to this request Bishop Siegfried and three missionaries came to Sweden, and, landing on the southwestern coast, encamped the first night at Wexio, on Lake Sodre. Here the bishop saw in a vision a great company of angels, and thereupon determined to build a church at that place. The pagan inhabitants, however, were hostile to the undertaking, and seized the three missionaries, Winaman, Unaman, and Sunaman, whom they beheaded, and caused their heads to be thrown into the water.
One night soon after this sad event Siegfried was walking along the shore of the lake, sighing and praying, when he espied three luminous objects approaching on the water, borne onward by the waves, and soon he recognized them as the heads of his friends. And, behold, the first head said, "The dead shall be avenged." And a voice from the second head exclaimed, "When?" Then replied the third head in solemn tones, "On their children and children's children." This prophecy was not, however, fulfilled to the letter, for through Siegfried's intercession Olaf consented to spare the lives of the murderers, on condition that they should build a Christian church in Wexio; and this church, which still exists, has on its coat-of-arms, or seal, the representation of three severed heads, in memory of the occurrence and its legend. In this church hung formerly a shoe of Wodan's famous steed Sleipnir, as a souvenir of the following tradition: When the church bells rang for the first time to summon the people to mass, Wodan came riding over the mountains, and, when nearing Wexio, Sleipnir, in a sudden fright, struck a rock with one of his feet, and the impress of the powerful blow remains in the rock to this day. But the shoe fell off and was placed in the church.
6. Many years ago, so runs an old legend, a man obtained employment at a farm in Norway, where, unknown to him, the mistress was a witch. Although the man had plenty of good wholesome food, he did not thrive upon it, but became thinner each day. Being troubled at this, he sought the counsel of a wise man, from whom he learned the true character of his mistress. He learned, moreover, that she had been in the habit of transforming him into a horse at night while he slept, and riding him to Troms Church, a fact which fully accounted for his leanness.
The wise man also gave him a magical ointment, with which to rub his head at bedtime, and by virtue of which, on awaking the next morning, he found himself standing by Troms Church with a bridle in his hand, while behind him were a number of horses bound together by their tails. Soon he perceived his mistress coming out of the church, and when she was near enough to him he threw the bridle over her head, and instantly she was transformed into a handsome mare, which he mounted and rode homeward. On his way, however, he stopped at a farrier's and had the animal shod with four new shoes, and on reaching home he told his master that he had bought a fine mare, that would be an excellent mate for one which he already had. His master bought the mare at a good price, but when he took the bridle off she disappeared, and in her place stood the mistress witch with new horse-shoes on her hands and feet. Thereupon the man related the wonderful tale of his experiences, and in consequence thereof the wife was turned out of doors, and never got rid of the horse-shoes.
7. Once upon a time a gentleman of rank was driving with four horses along the highway which runs between the towns of Tübingen and Hirschau, in Würtemberg, and when opposite a roadside chapel he scoffed at a picture of the Madonna which adorned it. Immediately his horses came to a standstill, nor could he make them proceed, in spite of vigorous urging. At length, in this dilemma, a priest was called, who imposed as a penance the removal of a shoe from the right fore-foot of each horse, and after this had been done the gentleman was enabled to continue his journey. And in commemoration of this miracle one of the horseshoes was nailed upon the chapel-door, where it was still to be seen in recent years.
8. One Sunday morning a swarthy rider on a black horse rode at full speed through the village of Nabburg, in Bavaria, directly to the blacksmith's shop, to have his horse shod. "Will you not rest on a Sunday?" demanded the smith. "My steed and I journey to and fro, and care nothing for the Christian Sunday," replied the horseman; "therefore shoe my horse in the Devil's name, and I counsel thee speak no pious word meanwhile, for no devout person has yet obtained the mastery over this spirited animal." With these words he sprang to the ground and stroked his horse's flowing mane. The smith, though ill at ease, began the work, and the horse was as quiet as if under a spell, much to the astonishment of his master, who could scarce believe his eyes. Three shoes were quickly set, and the smith called to his assistant, "Now, then, in God's name, hand me the last shoe!" Instantly the fiery steed reared and struck out wildly, casting a shoe with such force against the wall that it remains to this day embedded there. But the horse and his rider were seen no more.
9. In a wall on an estate called Ludwigstein, in Schleswig-Holstein, is to be seen a large stone bearing the imprint of a horse-shoe, wherewith is associated the following tale: One morning many years ago a horseman was riding along the road when the church prayerbell rang, whereupon he swore an oath and said, "May the Devil take me if I am not again on this very spot this evening when the bell again sounds." And indeed he kept his word, but at the stroke of the evening bell his horse slipped upon the stone and broke a leg, and the mark of a shoe is still to be seen there.
10. The Horse-Shoe imprint in the cemetery of the Church of Our Lady at Münster. During the building of this beautiful Gothic church in the fourteenth century, the Devil observed its shapely proportions with increasing displeasure, and bethought himself of various schemes to hinder the work's progress. Finally he decided on trying to bewitch the architect's senses. Accordingly he braided his hair, arrayed himself in gay female attire, bedecked with costly jewels, and appeared before the architect, whom he sought to ensnare with soft words and gifts. But the latter was not thus to be deceived. Leaning upon his measuring-rod, he listened unmoved to the beguiling conversation of the pretended belle, and rejected with scorn the gold and precious stones which she brought him. Thereupon the Devil became enraged, stamped upon the ground with vehemence, and disappeared, leaving behind him an evil smell; and the mark of one of the iron horse-shoes, wherewith he was shod, was deeply imprinted on a stone in the cemetery, and, according to popular report, is still to be found there.
The impressions on stone of figures of horse-shoes, of which there are numerous examples in northern Europe, are regarded by some archaeologsts as sacred symbols of the pagans or relics of the cult of Wodan, and as showing the sites of ancient altars and burial places; while others maintain that these figures were originally intended as boundary marks. Numerous traditions associate them with battles fought in these localities, and in the popular fancy they are imagined to indicate the favorite haunts of witches, the meeting-places where they held their revels, the horse-shoe mark being an imprint of the Devil's foot. These weird rendezvous were usually on the tops of mountains or hills, and are still known as Witches' Dance-Places in different parts of Europe, especially in Germany.
And there he fell on his knees and prayed,
And many an Ave Maria said;
Bread and money he gave to the poor,
And he nailed the roan's shoes to the chapel door.
2. In the traditionary lore of the Harz Mountains there is a weird tale of four horse-shoes, which for ages were to be seen on the door of a church in the suburbs of Klettenburg.
Once upon a time, so runs the story, a great drinking match was held on a Sunday morning at Elrich. The prize was a golden chain, and many knights assembled from near and far. The carousal lasted for some hours, until Count Ernest of Klettenburg, the only one who could still keep on his feet, exultantly claimed the golden chain, which he hung about his neck. Then, mounting his horse, he rode homeward, and while nearing Klettenburg he heard the strains of even-song in a church dedicated to St. Nicholas. Urging on his steed, he rode madly through the open door straight to the altar. Then, so runs the legend, the horse's four shoes fell off, and horse and rider sank down together out of sight. In memory of this wonderful event, the four horse-shoes were placed on the door of the church, and for many years were regarded with awe by the simple countryfolk.
3. In the construction of the Church of St. Stephen, at Tangermünde, in Prussian Saxony, a brick edifice of the fourteenth century, the members of two guilds, those of the blacksmiths and shoemakers, were of especial assistance; and in remembrance of this, a horse-shoe and an iron shoe-sole were built into the outer wall of the church. The former indicates that up to its level the blacksmiths had built the walls, and the latter shows that all the work above the horse-shoe was done by the shoemakers; such, at least, is the popular explanation, which may well be received cum grano salis.
4. In the parish church of Schwarzenstein, in east Prussia, hang two horse-shoes as reminders of the following tradition: In the village of Eichmedien, one mile from Rastenburg, lived formerly as tavern-keeper a woman, who had earned an unenviable notoriety by her practice of charging double the proper fees for board and lodging. Late one night, when several of her guests accused her of being a cheat, she asseverated her honesty by holding up her hand, and saying in the form of an oath: "If my score is not correct, may the Devil now jump on my back." The Evil One took the woman promptly at her word, transformed her into a mare, and rode her out of the village, laughing scornfully. At headlong speed he rode to a blacksmith's shop in Schwarzenstein, and demanded that his mare be shod at once. The blacksmith, routed out of his sleep, excused himself, pleading the lateness of the hour and the fact that there was no fire in his forge. The Devil insisted, however, and promised liberal payment if the work were done quickly. The blacksmith yielded at length, but had not proceeded far in shaping the shoes when the mare began to speak. "My cousin, don't you know me?" she said; "I am the tavern-keeper." Upon this the blacksmith was so horrified that neither threats nor entreaties could prevail to make him proceed with the shoeing, and before he had finished the third shoe a cock crowed, and immediately the spell was broken and the woman reassumed her own form. And to point the moral of this legend, and as a warning to cheats, the two horse-shoes which the smith had completed were nailed up in the village church at Schwarzenstein.
5. According to an old tradition, the Lapp king, Olaf Skötkonung (995-1030), wishing to become a Christian, asked his royal contemporary, Ethelred II. of England, to send him a teacher. In response to this request Bishop Siegfried and three missionaries came to Sweden, and, landing on the southwestern coast, encamped the first night at Wexio, on Lake Sodre. Here the bishop saw in a vision a great company of angels, and thereupon determined to build a church at that place. The pagan inhabitants, however, were hostile to the undertaking, and seized the three missionaries, Winaman, Unaman, and Sunaman, whom they beheaded, and caused their heads to be thrown into the water.
One night soon after this sad event Siegfried was walking along the shore of the lake, sighing and praying, when he espied three luminous objects approaching on the water, borne onward by the waves, and soon he recognized them as the heads of his friends. And, behold, the first head said, "The dead shall be avenged." And a voice from the second head exclaimed, "When?" Then replied the third head in solemn tones, "On their children and children's children." This prophecy was not, however, fulfilled to the letter, for through Siegfried's intercession Olaf consented to spare the lives of the murderers, on condition that they should build a Christian church in Wexio; and this church, which still exists, has on its coat-of-arms, or seal, the representation of three severed heads, in memory of the occurrence and its legend. In this church hung formerly a shoe of Wodan's famous steed Sleipnir, as a souvenir of the following tradition: When the church bells rang for the first time to summon the people to mass, Wodan came riding over the mountains, and, when nearing Wexio, Sleipnir, in a sudden fright, struck a rock with one of his feet, and the impress of the powerful blow remains in the rock to this day. But the shoe fell off and was placed in the church.
6. Many years ago, so runs an old legend, a man obtained employment at a farm in Norway, where, unknown to him, the mistress was a witch. Although the man had plenty of good wholesome food, he did not thrive upon it, but became thinner each day. Being troubled at this, he sought the counsel of a wise man, from whom he learned the true character of his mistress. He learned, moreover, that she had been in the habit of transforming him into a horse at night while he slept, and riding him to Troms Church, a fact which fully accounted for his leanness.
The wise man also gave him a magical ointment, with which to rub his head at bedtime, and by virtue of which, on awaking the next morning, he found himself standing by Troms Church with a bridle in his hand, while behind him were a number of horses bound together by their tails. Soon he perceived his mistress coming out of the church, and when she was near enough to him he threw the bridle over her head, and instantly she was transformed into a handsome mare, which he mounted and rode homeward. On his way, however, he stopped at a farrier's and had the animal shod with four new shoes, and on reaching home he told his master that he had bought a fine mare, that would be an excellent mate for one which he already had. His master bought the mare at a good price, but when he took the bridle off she disappeared, and in her place stood the mistress witch with new horse-shoes on her hands and feet. Thereupon the man related the wonderful tale of his experiences, and in consequence thereof the wife was turned out of doors, and never got rid of the horse-shoes.
7. Once upon a time a gentleman of rank was driving with four horses along the highway which runs between the towns of Tübingen and Hirschau, in Würtemberg, and when opposite a roadside chapel he scoffed at a picture of the Madonna which adorned it. Immediately his horses came to a standstill, nor could he make them proceed, in spite of vigorous urging. At length, in this dilemma, a priest was called, who imposed as a penance the removal of a shoe from the right fore-foot of each horse, and after this had been done the gentleman was enabled to continue his journey. And in commemoration of this miracle one of the horseshoes was nailed upon the chapel-door, where it was still to be seen in recent years.
8. One Sunday morning a swarthy rider on a black horse rode at full speed through the village of Nabburg, in Bavaria, directly to the blacksmith's shop, to have his horse shod. "Will you not rest on a Sunday?" demanded the smith. "My steed and I journey to and fro, and care nothing for the Christian Sunday," replied the horseman; "therefore shoe my horse in the Devil's name, and I counsel thee speak no pious word meanwhile, for no devout person has yet obtained the mastery over this spirited animal." With these words he sprang to the ground and stroked his horse's flowing mane. The smith, though ill at ease, began the work, and the horse was as quiet as if under a spell, much to the astonishment of his master, who could scarce believe his eyes. Three shoes were quickly set, and the smith called to his assistant, "Now, then, in God's name, hand me the last shoe!" Instantly the fiery steed reared and struck out wildly, casting a shoe with such force against the wall that it remains to this day embedded there. But the horse and his rider were seen no more.
9. In a wall on an estate called Ludwigstein, in Schleswig-Holstein, is to be seen a large stone bearing the imprint of a horse-shoe, wherewith is associated the following tale: One morning many years ago a horseman was riding along the road when the church prayerbell rang, whereupon he swore an oath and said, "May the Devil take me if I am not again on this very spot this evening when the bell again sounds." And indeed he kept his word, but at the stroke of the evening bell his horse slipped upon the stone and broke a leg, and the mark of a shoe is still to be seen there.
10. The Horse-Shoe imprint in the cemetery of the Church of Our Lady at Münster. During the building of this beautiful Gothic church in the fourteenth century, the Devil observed its shapely proportions with increasing displeasure, and bethought himself of various schemes to hinder the work's progress. Finally he decided on trying to bewitch the architect's senses. Accordingly he braided his hair, arrayed himself in gay female attire, bedecked with costly jewels, and appeared before the architect, whom he sought to ensnare with soft words and gifts. But the latter was not thus to be deceived. Leaning upon his measuring-rod, he listened unmoved to the beguiling conversation of the pretended belle, and rejected with scorn the gold and precious stones which she brought him. Thereupon the Devil became enraged, stamped upon the ground with vehemence, and disappeared, leaving behind him an evil smell; and the mark of one of the iron horse-shoes, wherewith he was shod, was deeply imprinted on a stone in the cemetery, and, according to popular report, is still to be found there.
The impressions on stone of figures of horse-shoes, of which there are numerous examples in northern Europe, are regarded by some archaeologsts as sacred symbols of the pagans or relics of the cult of Wodan, and as showing the sites of ancient altars and burial places; while others maintain that these figures were originally intended as boundary marks. Numerous traditions associate them with battles fought in these localities, and in the popular fancy they are imagined to indicate the favorite haunts of witches, the meeting-places where they held their revels, the horse-shoe mark being an imprint of the Devil's foot. These weird rendezvous were usually on the tops of mountains or hills, and are still known as Witches' Dance-Places in different parts of Europe, especially in Germany.
♘امیرحسین♞
♘ مدیریت انجمن اسب ایران ♞
RECAPITULATION OF THEORIES OF THE ORIGIN OF THE HORSE-SHOE SUPERSTITION
In the preceding pages an attempt has been made to furnish plausible reasons for the horse-shoe's universal popularity both as an amulet and as a token of good luck. It is evident, however, that this superstition cannot be referred to any one particular starting-point. Just as the sources of a river may be manifold, consisting of numerous springs and tributaries, so too, the belief in the horse-shoe's magical virtues is of complex origin and can be traced to diverse beginnings.
It may be profitable, therefore, briefly to enumerate the different theories which have been advanced:--
1. At the rite of the Passover, the blood sprinkled upon the lintel and door-posts formed the chief points of an arch. Hence the value of arch-shaped talismans.
2. The magical virtue of the horse-shoe against witches and fiends has been attributed to its bifurcated form, and to its resemblance to the crescent. Charms of similar shape are known to have been in use among the ancient Chaldeans and Egyptians.
3. Iron and steel, metals having traditional power against evil-disposed fairies and goblins.
4. The serpentine shape. Serpent-worship was nearly universal among primitive peoples, and amuletic symbols of this form were in use in the days of ancient Rome.
5. The so-called horse-shoe arch as typifying a beneficent, protecting power.
6. The ancient conception of the earth as having the shape of a round boat turned upside down and corresponding to the Egyptian Put-sign.
7. The Horse. This animal was worshiped among the early Germanic tribes, and an English myth accredits to it luck-bringing qualities.
8. The Scandinavian, superstition of the Demon-Mare.
9. The old astrological principle that Mars, the God of War and the War Horse, was hostile to Saturn, the liege-lord of witches.
10. The legend of Saint Dunstan and the Devil.
11. Phallic Symbolism.
12. The Aureole or Nimbus.
13. Supernatural faculties ascribed to blacksmiths.
14. The Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol [upside down U], signifying the mystical door of life.
15. Horses' hoof-prints in mythology and tradition.
16. The horse-shoe a symbol of the heathen god Wodan.
In the preceding pages an attempt has been made to furnish plausible reasons for the horse-shoe's universal popularity both as an amulet and as a token of good luck. It is evident, however, that this superstition cannot be referred to any one particular starting-point. Just as the sources of a river may be manifold, consisting of numerous springs and tributaries, so too, the belief in the horse-shoe's magical virtues is of complex origin and can be traced to diverse beginnings.
It may be profitable, therefore, briefly to enumerate the different theories which have been advanced:--
1. At the rite of the Passover, the blood sprinkled upon the lintel and door-posts formed the chief points of an arch. Hence the value of arch-shaped talismans.
2. The magical virtue of the horse-shoe against witches and fiends has been attributed to its bifurcated form, and to its resemblance to the crescent. Charms of similar shape are known to have been in use among the ancient Chaldeans and Egyptians.
3. Iron and steel, metals having traditional power against evil-disposed fairies and goblins.
4. The serpentine shape. Serpent-worship was nearly universal among primitive peoples, and amuletic symbols of this form were in use in the days of ancient Rome.
5. The so-called horse-shoe arch as typifying a beneficent, protecting power.
6. The ancient conception of the earth as having the shape of a round boat turned upside down and corresponding to the Egyptian Put-sign.
7. The Horse. This animal was worshiped among the early Germanic tribes, and an English myth accredits to it luck-bringing qualities.
8. The Scandinavian, superstition of the Demon-Mare.
9. The old astrological principle that Mars, the God of War and the War Horse, was hostile to Saturn, the liege-lord of witches.
10. The legend of Saint Dunstan and the Devil.
11. Phallic Symbolism.
12. The Aureole or Nimbus.
13. Supernatural faculties ascribed to blacksmiths.
14. The Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol [upside down U], signifying the mystical door of life.
15. Horses' hoof-prints in mythology and tradition.
16. The horse-shoe a symbol of the heathen god Wodan.
♘امیرحسین♞
♘ مدیریت انجمن اسب ایران ♞
Whatever may be the origin of the superstitious employment of the horse-shoe, its adoption as a token of good luck appears to be comparatively modern, its earliest use having been for the exclusion of witches, evil spirits, and all such uncanny beings.
Before leaving the subject an extract may be given from an article in the "London World," August 23, 1753, against the repeal of the so-called Witch Act, wherein the writer offers the following satirical advice to whomever it might concern:--
To secure yourself against the enchantments of witches, especially if you are a person of fashion and have never been taught the Lord's Prayer, the only method I know of is to nail a horse-shoe upon the threshold. This I can affirm to be of the greatest efficacy, insomuch that I have taken notice of many a little cottage in the country with a horse-shoe at its door where gaming, extravagance, Jacobitism, and all the catalogue of witchcrafts have been totally unknown.
The world moves and civilization progresses, but the old superstitions remain the same. The rusty horse-shoe found on the road is still prized as a lucky token, and will doubtless continue to be so prized; for human nature does not change, and superstition is a part of human nature.
Before leaving the subject an extract may be given from an article in the "London World," August 23, 1753, against the repeal of the so-called Witch Act, wherein the writer offers the following satirical advice to whomever it might concern:--
To secure yourself against the enchantments of witches, especially if you are a person of fashion and have never been taught the Lord's Prayer, the only method I know of is to nail a horse-shoe upon the threshold. This I can affirm to be of the greatest efficacy, insomuch that I have taken notice of many a little cottage in the country with a horse-shoe at its door where gaming, extravagance, Jacobitism, and all the catalogue of witchcrafts have been totally unknown.
The world moves and civilization progresses, but the old superstitions remain the same. The rusty horse-shoe found on the road is still prized as a lucky token, and will doubtless continue to be so prized; for human nature does not change, and superstition is a part of human nature.
♘امیرحسین♞
♘ مدیریت انجمن اسب ایران ♞
Many people around the world consider the horseshoe to be symbol of good luck, but few know the history behind this famous superstition.
There are two reasons for the horseshoe being considered lucky that are widely agreed upon by scholars. One, is the fact that the horse shoe is a crescent shape. The other is the fact that the horse shoe is made of iron. However, it has also been suggested that the horseshoe's luck may have something to do with its connection to the animal itself.
The crescent, is the symbol of the great goddess, or triple goddess, who is worshiped by a large number of ancient civilizations. The crescent is therefore often considered to be a protective shape. This, combined with iron, makes the horseshoe a powerful symbol. Iron, because of its strength, was thought to be a very special and even somewhat magical material. Those who were able to work it, such as black smiths, were believed to be magicians with supernatural abilities. It was believed that iron could ward off demons and witches and horseshoes were often hung on people's front doors for this reason.
The horse shoe also has seven nail holes, and seven is amongst certain cultures, considered to be a lucky number. This could have something to do with the horseshoe being lucky, or could just be a mere coincidence. It was also once believed that if a horse were shod with shoes made from the iron of a sword by which a man has been killed, the horse would be exceptionally fast and would never tire.
It is also possible that the horseshoe was once used as a symbol in the ancient practice of serpent worship. Engravings of both snakes and horse shoes can be found on ancient stones and medals. Also, in front of a church in Credi, (a town in southern Malta) there is a statue at whose feet lay the protective symbol of a half moon encircled by a snake.
In ancient Asiatic and Egyptian cultures the serpent is considered to be divine because of its elegant motion, its ability to shed its skin, its eyes, and they way it springs upon its prey. The worship of these creatures is a very ancient practice, which was once nearly worldwide
The most interesting possibility for the lucky horseshoe superstition is perhaps its association with the horse itself. The horse has been a beloved and sometimes even worshiped animal amongst cultures all over the world, so it would make sense that the shoe of such a magnificent animal would be valued. There is a myth amongst the English in which the horse is considered a luck-bringer, and horse-worship was common practice amongst the early Celts, Teutons, and Slavs.
The horse was even considered to be divine by some Christians. The Irish believe that the horseshoe is magical because the horse and the ass were in the stable where Christ was born, and are therefore blessed creatures. Another example is the people of Delve, a small village in Holstein. These people allowed a horse to decide where they would build their church. They tied a portrait of the Virgin on the back of a paint mare. The mare was then allowed to wander freely, and the church was to be built on the spot where the mare was found the next morning. ( www.sacred-texts.com)
In Indian myth, the horse is often considered to be a symbol of good luck.
In Buddhism the horse is one of the 12 animals in the Asian 60 year cycle. The last year of the horse was 2002 and was considered a very fortunate year. (KhandroNet)
For the ancient Indians horses were primarily sacrificial animals. The birth of Rama is said to have come about because a horse was sacrificed to the gods. Rama's mother, Kansalya, could not give birth, until a horse was offered up to the gods. She was then made fertile and gave birth to Rama.
Horses also represented the sun because the horse was the avatar of the sun god Surya. Surya is said to have been drawn in a chariot pulled by seven red mares called Harrits. Surya, in the form of a horse also represents the moon, which is called Soma. Surya is also identified with Agni, the lightening, which is also represented by a horse. Interestingly, soma is also the name for the substance that the gods needed to drink in order to remain immortal. The Hindus believed that the moon was the source of this magical drink. (Howey 117). Based on this information it seems possible that the horse might be some how related to the idea of immortality.
For the Hindus the horse is a very spiritual animal that is very close to the gods. In fact, it is even possible that the horse was considered a relative of the gods. They believe that horses' parents were heaven and earth and that horses belonged to the same race "devajata" as the Gods. (Howey 185)
The horseshoe superstition is most likely the result of a combination of these bits of folklore and myths, and not just a single one. But even more so, it is a result of the basic human need to believe in something greater and more powerful than ourselves. Regardless of how or where it started, it is a superstition that has been with us since ancient times, and is likely to stay with us as long as we feel the need to receive protection and good fortune from an outside force.
Work Cited
Howey M. Oldfield. The Horse in Magic and Myth. Mineola New York: Dover Publications INC. 2002.
There are two reasons for the horseshoe being considered lucky that are widely agreed upon by scholars. One, is the fact that the horse shoe is a crescent shape. The other is the fact that the horse shoe is made of iron. However, it has also been suggested that the horseshoe's luck may have something to do with its connection to the animal itself.
The crescent, is the symbol of the great goddess, or triple goddess, who is worshiped by a large number of ancient civilizations. The crescent is therefore often considered to be a protective shape. This, combined with iron, makes the horseshoe a powerful symbol. Iron, because of its strength, was thought to be a very special and even somewhat magical material. Those who were able to work it, such as black smiths, were believed to be magicians with supernatural abilities. It was believed that iron could ward off demons and witches and horseshoes were often hung on people's front doors for this reason.
The horse shoe also has seven nail holes, and seven is amongst certain cultures, considered to be a lucky number. This could have something to do with the horseshoe being lucky, or could just be a mere coincidence. It was also once believed that if a horse were shod with shoes made from the iron of a sword by which a man has been killed, the horse would be exceptionally fast and would never tire.
It is also possible that the horseshoe was once used as a symbol in the ancient practice of serpent worship. Engravings of both snakes and horse shoes can be found on ancient stones and medals. Also, in front of a church in Credi, (a town in southern Malta) there is a statue at whose feet lay the protective symbol of a half moon encircled by a snake.
In ancient Asiatic and Egyptian cultures the serpent is considered to be divine because of its elegant motion, its ability to shed its skin, its eyes, and they way it springs upon its prey. The worship of these creatures is a very ancient practice, which was once nearly worldwide
The most interesting possibility for the lucky horseshoe superstition is perhaps its association with the horse itself. The horse has been a beloved and sometimes even worshiped animal amongst cultures all over the world, so it would make sense that the shoe of such a magnificent animal would be valued. There is a myth amongst the English in which the horse is considered a luck-bringer, and horse-worship was common practice amongst the early Celts, Teutons, and Slavs.
The horse was even considered to be divine by some Christians. The Irish believe that the horseshoe is magical because the horse and the ass were in the stable where Christ was born, and are therefore blessed creatures. Another example is the people of Delve, a small village in Holstein. These people allowed a horse to decide where they would build their church. They tied a portrait of the Virgin on the back of a paint mare. The mare was then allowed to wander freely, and the church was to be built on the spot where the mare was found the next morning. ( www.sacred-texts.com)
In Indian myth, the horse is often considered to be a symbol of good luck.
In Buddhism the horse is one of the 12 animals in the Asian 60 year cycle. The last year of the horse was 2002 and was considered a very fortunate year. (KhandroNet)
For the ancient Indians horses were primarily sacrificial animals. The birth of Rama is said to have come about because a horse was sacrificed to the gods. Rama's mother, Kansalya, could not give birth, until a horse was offered up to the gods. She was then made fertile and gave birth to Rama.
Horses also represented the sun because the horse was the avatar of the sun god Surya. Surya is said to have been drawn in a chariot pulled by seven red mares called Harrits. Surya, in the form of a horse also represents the moon, which is called Soma. Surya is also identified with Agni, the lightening, which is also represented by a horse. Interestingly, soma is also the name for the substance that the gods needed to drink in order to remain immortal. The Hindus believed that the moon was the source of this magical drink. (Howey 117). Based on this information it seems possible that the horse might be some how related to the idea of immortality.
For the Hindus the horse is a very spiritual animal that is very close to the gods. In fact, it is even possible that the horse was considered a relative of the gods. They believe that horses' parents were heaven and earth and that horses belonged to the same race "devajata" as the Gods. (Howey 185)
The horseshoe superstition is most likely the result of a combination of these bits of folklore and myths, and not just a single one. But even more so, it is a result of the basic human need to believe in something greater and more powerful than ourselves. Regardless of how or where it started, it is a superstition that has been with us since ancient times, and is likely to stay with us as long as we feel the need to receive protection and good fortune from an outside force.
Work Cited
Howey M. Oldfield. The Horse in Magic and Myth. Mineola New York: Dover Publications INC. 2002.
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امیر حسین خان این همه مطلب انگلیسیو آدم پیر میشه تا بخونه که !!!!! 8) 