Horse Barding

Uilleag · Post by **Uilleag** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 4:42 pm

I have started work on a very interesting project, a 3 - piece cuir bouilli peytral. The piece will be used in the semi-professional jousting circuit and at some local Ren Faires.

The inspiration comes from the cuir bouilli barding currently on display at the MET. The first picture was taken by the client while researching the project. The second picture is the progress so far. The next step will be to emboss the design the client wants and then shaping. We will then do a preliminary fitting with the horse, to insure a good fit, and then final hardening, painting and sealing. I will also be working on a 1/2 chamfron and a crupper for this horse, and I hope to document the project's progress as I go along.

LWCM · Post by **LWCM** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 5:30 pm

NEAT project! I am looking forward to seeing it grow up.

luke binks · Post by **luke binks** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 7:48 pm

Great Project man! Im very interested to see how this turns out, I might have to try this one myself

Mike England · Post by **Mike England** » Sun Apr 02, 2006 2:58 pm

This is Athena, the horse it is being made for.

Uilleag · Post by **Uilleag** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 11:34 am

Here is a picture of the embossing design. It will be refined somewhat when it gets transfered to the leather, which I hope to have finished by this evening.

Uilleag · Post by **Uilleag** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 4:04 pm

This afternoon's progress:

I transfered the embossing pattern onto the two flank pieces of the peytral. Then I finished embossing the right flank. I then died that piece and began the shaping. It will need to case a bit longer, with deeper moisture penetration throughout the leather, but the surface needs to dry a bit......Casing leather is such a touchy, impercise process, but if it's not right, shaping can be a real bear.

I want to keep going this afternoon, but the neighbors are getting home, so I need to lay off on the pounding for the evening. I will probably get the embossing pattern transfered onto the front portion this eveining and then call it a day.

Uilleag · Post by **Uilleag** » Thu Apr 06, 2006 12:52 pm

Here is today's progress so far. The shaping on the right flank is finished until the final fitting this weekend. The pictures don't pic it up very well, it is rather subtle, but I think that I have followed the notes on the design fairly accurately. I will know for sure this week end.

The design has been transfered into the front and left flank pieces and they will be embossed, and hopefully shaped by this eveing.

The embossing will eventually be silver leafed, but the sizing needs to be confirmed, as well as the shaping before I can do the final hardening and then the rest of the finishing process. I will try to get more pics posted this eveinng, (if I have time), otherwise, I will post them tomorrow morning.

And of course I will try and get pics this weekend of the barding with the horse it is being made for. Hopefully, the details will show, up, but no promises, the horse is black and the detailed embossing won't be leafed yet......

VRIN · Post by **VRIN** » Thu Apr 06, 2006 2:35 pm

That will look nice! how are the "plates" going to be attatched to each other?

Also looking at your inspiration museum piece, do you have any idea how they put those deep shoulder bowls in the front of the piece? I was wondering if there is any precedent for press forming the pieces?

Makes me wish I had a horse to dress up!

VRIN · Post by **VRIN** » Thu Apr 06, 2006 2:37 pm

duplicate

Uilleag · Post by **Uilleag** » Thu Apr 06, 2006 3:54 pm

VRIN wrote:That will look nice! how are the "plates" going to be attatched to each other?

Also looking at your inspiration museum piece, do you have any idea how they put those deep shoulder bowls in the front of the piece? I was wondering if there is any precedent for press forming the pieces?

Makes me wish I had a horse to dress up!

The individual "plates" will be held together with ties. Probably three per seam.

As for the deep shoulder bowls on the flank pieces, I am using a dishing form and a round-headed dishing hammer to good effect. Unfortunately, the detail doesn't show up very well in the pictures.

Press forming would be another good technique. Unforturnately, I have not been able to find evidence either way on how the forming was actually done.

There is some speculation that the leather was soaked and then stretched over a form and nailed in place. It was then allowed to dry and some sort of hardening agent would have been used. In the extant pieces in the MET's display, there is evidence of gesso having been used in the leather....

Mike England · Post by **Mike England** » Fri Apr 07, 2006 9:19 am

The 2 surviving cour boulli peytral side plates currently on display at the Met each have 3 sets of 2 holes with matching spacings on the inside edges. Maximillians Triumph shows very similarly shaped armours with bowed laces in the samed approximate positions as these sets of holes.

I was reading through several armour/tournament history books last summer when I noticed references to leather barding that was armour and not just trappings. My mare Athena has always been a little spooky and gets a lot more energetic when I ride with my armor on. I got to thinking the less clangy bits I have on her the better. So as I read Coltman Clephans "The Medieval Tournament" and it described several of the bardings shown in "Maximillians Triumph" as hardened leather I started paying attension to the details of those armours and I noticed a lot of clues in other artworks that a considerable amount of medieval/renaissance horse armours were hardened leather. When I heard the only 3 pieces of leather horse armour in the US were on display at the Met I travelled up there and took a few pictures. The book accompanying the exhibition [url=http://www.metmuseum.org/store/st_beautyShop_Page.asp/familyID/{669E8BF5-62E7-4910-8270-FA9D404B0D01}/FromPage//catID/{F500333B-F7C7-411F-8379-05E97D21CF33}/familyNo//callFromRelViewer//SpecialPermFlag/S/FromSearch/]"The Armored Horse in Europe 1480-1620"[/url] had a lot of interesting details on the pieces on display as well as a listing of the other surviving cour boulli bardings and their current locations. I contacted a few of these places and got some information and a photo of a crupper piece at the armoury in Leeds. The pieces in the Met and Leeds are very plainly decorated as they were very likely used by men at arms but a couple of the surviving pieces listed in the exhibit book are in fact highly decorated and originally the possesions of European monarchs.
In my studies it became pretty clear that leather horse armor was probably far more common than steel but it hadn't faired so well over time.
As far as construction techniques go some of my readings indicate Ullieag's techniques to be very close to the originals but I think it is all jsut speculation.

Uilleag · Post by **Uilleag** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 5:43 pm

Today we did the fitting with Athena and her peytral to insure that the pattern and shaping was done correctly, and to lay out where the straps need to be placed.

<IMG src="http://www.houseofthewolf.com/progresspics/mepeytral11.jpg">

<IMG src="http://www.houseofthewolf.com/progresspics/mepeytral12.jpg">

<IMG src="http://www.houseofthewolf.com/progresspics/mepeytral13.jpg">

HammerHand · Post by **HammerHand** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 7:45 pm

That is really nice, Wolf. Great craftsmanship and a beautiful horse. Keep up the good work and post pics for the finished product.

Rod Walker · Post by **Rod Walker** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 7:52 am

Any further progress on this?

Mike England · Post by **Mike England** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 3:17 pm

We have had some schedule conflicts and family emergencys but I suspect there should be an update soon.

Uilleag · Post by **Uilleag** » Wed May 17, 2006 12:53 pm

Finally, we have cleared up the scheduling tangles and there has been some more progress on this project. Hopefully, there will be some pics of Athena wearing her new barding while jousting this weekend....

In the meantime, here are some pics of the finished peytral.
<IMG src="http://www.houseofthewolf.com/gallery/Misc/mepeytral3.jpg">

<IMG src="http://www.houseofthewolf.com/gallery/Misc/mepeytral1.jpg">

<IMG src="http://www.houseofthewolf.com/gallery/Misc/mepeytral2.jpg">

Destichado · Post by **Destichado** » Thu May 18, 2006 12:44 am

Okay, I'm a believer.

At first I was very, very skeptical about this project, from the shape of the pieces to the materiel to the design, but I'm convinced.
It looks excellent, and from experience I'm certain it's going to look even better on the horse.

audax · Post by **audax** » Thu May 18, 2006 12:41 pm

Dan,

I nominate you for a Laurel, man. Your work is just exquisite. I can't wait for you to finish testing out those 14th cent knees so I can pick some up.

Great work.

audax

Brother Logan · Post by **Brother Logan** » Fri May 19, 2006 1:51 am

Dan,
This is so very cool! I had a chance to wear the studded shynbalds in combat last weekend, they were perfect! Review forthcomming.
Cheers,
Leo

Mike England · Post by **Mike England** » Tue May 23, 2006 10:07 am

I didn't manage to get any pictures this weekend as we were pretty rushed getting everything together and of course forgot the camera. I plan to adorn my horse with this peytral for the queens joust for the rest of the run of the Va ren fair. If you are in the area please come down check it out and say hi.

Someone did get a picture of my wife preparing to joust and it is up on the VA site.
http://varf.org/gallery/2006-Season/P5200478

Mike England · Post by **Mike England** » Tue Jun 20, 2006 4:36 pm

Here's a pic of Athena with her Peytral and Chanfron and Pheobe with her Chanfron from House of the Wolf.

[/img]

InfinitySteel · Post by **InfinitySteel** » Tue Jun 20, 2006 11:23 pm

Very wet leather will mold into astounding shapes with some work.

I think a lot of the more intricate medieval designs were molded over carved wood "lasts". In a mass market,the volume would justify doing this. And the leather could be held in place by wooden frames with the leather sandwhiched in between them and the forms.

Leaving open spaces, in which to tool it, as it dried.

justus · Post by **justus** » Wed Jun 21, 2006 9:18 am

Note to self, never show these pictures to my wife. :wink:

Nice work as always Dan, it seems you are gaining quite a reputation as the go to guy for leather. I heard several people talking about your armor at Lilies war, and one person after learing that I knew you asked if my Bauzbands and Shynbalds were your work.

I was proud to have my work mistaken for yours.

-Justus