Historical information

Used on a farm in the late 19th or early 20th century.

Physical description

A pair of handmade wooden horse hames which are linked together by a leather strap at the top. It has leather traces and four metal rings. At the sides there are two long leather strips with chain links attached to each end.One long leather strap is shown in the second photo in Media - not to be confused with all the other tools in the photo. It would have been attached to a horse collar and used to to distribute the load around a horse's neck and shoulders when pulling a wagon or plough. The collar often supports and pads a pair of curved metal or wooden pieces, called hames, to which the traces, which attach to the wagon or plough, of the harness are attached. The collar allows the horse to use its full strength when pulling. It was used in the late 19th or early 20th century.