66/18/9

This is a peg type horse bit, serrated wheels missing. It is part of a collection from Mr Lankester, who comes from a family of Suffolk horsemen who worked for some generations for the Duke of Hamilton and later the Duke of Rontrose at Easton near Woodbridge. His father, George, grandfather, William George, and his g.g. father were in change of the Suffolk stud. The equipment detailed below is concerned with the control of stallions about which there was a great deal of secret lore. The design and use of this bits and preckens was kept from other horsemen. They were made by the local blacksmith for the Lankesters.

1 horse bit: metal

MERL ‘Catalogue index’ card - ‘Stallion bills etc // 3 Jan 1966 // Livestock horses harness // 1850s and later // Suffolk // K.J. Lankester, Baliff, Hook End Farm, Checkendon, Oxfordshire // Mr Lankester comes from a family of Suffolk horsemen who worked for some quotations for the Duke of Hamilton and later the Duke of Rontrose at Easton near Woodbridge. His father, George, grandfather, William George, and his g.g. father were in change of the Suffolk stud. The equipment detailed below is concerned with the control of stallions about whichthere was a great deal of secret lore. The design and use of this bits and preckens was kept from other horsemen. They were made by the local blacksmith for the Lankesters.’, MERL ‘Handwritten catalogue’ form - ‘Bit // Livestock- Horses // K. J. Lancaster, Baliff, Hook End Farm, Checkendon, Oxfordshire // [pencil drawing]’

Suffolk