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This is a rush-covered horse collar, with some straw. Horse collars vary considerably in pattern according to the breed of the horse, the type of work and the type of land. This specimen is probably of Midland design.

1 horse collar: rush; straw; leather

Visiting researcher note, Tim Johnson (basketmaker), 20 June 2014 – This collar is made of rush with some straw inside., MERL 'Catalogue index' card – ‘… // DATE ACQUIRED: // GROUP: // NEGATIVE: // PERIOD: // PLACE OF ORIGIN: // NUMBER: // DESCRIPTION: …‘ Rush covered collars, such as this specimen, are very old in origin and probably predate leather covered ones. // Horse collars vary considerably in pattern according to the breed of the horse, the type of work and the type of land. This specimen is probably of Midland design. // It consists of the Wale and the Body. The wale is the stuff tybe, stuffed with straw which forms the solid frame of the collar. Usually the long tube shape is made first, and then stuffed with straw, inserted by means of a long iron rod. In this case the facings of the body and the wale have been made as one piece of plaited rush, so that it is impossible to tell whether the straw was shaped seperately and then covered or whether the covering was stuffed with straw in the usual manner. The ends of the wale hav been covered with a 'hat' of plaited straw to reinforce them. // The body of the collar is usually made of straw, rye or wheat, and covered with coollen cloth, in this specimen a strong, dark blue cloth. Usually at this point the body is sewn to the wale and then faced with leather, but here the facing for the body and the covering of the wale have been made in one piece and sewn with twine to the body. The groove which runs between the wale and the body, has been accentuated by firm, long stitches of twine. // The collar has been mended with patches of leather in four places, covering the straw facing and wale, not the woollen part. // It measures 24 inches in length, 15.5 inches across the broadest part and 5 inches in thickness. //

Plant fibre, rush, Plant fibre, straw, Leather