Early ranchers and horse riders rode bareback or on blankets, limiting the efficiency with which they could travel. They soon realized that while riding at a gallop, a saddle would seat them more securely and give them better balance.
Animal skins, or some crude type of fabric, fastened under the horse's belly, served as the earliest covers. Such saddle-like equipment were used by Assyrian cavalry around 700 BC. Some of the sculptured horses in the Parthenon, Athens, distinctly show such saddle cloths.
The stirrup, a light frame or ring that holds the foot of a rider, attached to the saddle by a strap, was one of the milestones in saddle development. The nomadic tribes in northern China are thought to have been the inventors of the modern stirrup.
The proper type of saddle, fitted to the horse's back, with a stirrup, was known to the fourth-century Byzantines, who first came across them in their clashes with the barbarian Asiatic horsemen. The Byzantines adopted it from them as they realized, the saddle with foot support enabled the warrior to throw the spear or to shoot the arrow so much better.
The 4th century saddle can be discerned upon the frieze of the column erected at Constantinople in honor of the Roman Emperor Theodosius who, in an edict of AD 385, had limited the weight of a saddle to 60 lbs (27 kg).
The Western saddle is used for horse activities where the rider must work cattle. It was developed from the Spanish saddles that were brought by the Spanish Conquistadors when they came to the Americas. These saddles were adapted to suit the needs of vaqueros and cowboys of California, Mexico and Texas.
Unlike the English saddle the Western saddle has a horn on the front. This was used originally for tying the rope to, so when a cow was roped it would be tied to the saddle.
The English saddle is used for horse sports like show jumping, dressage, and eventing. It is also used in all of the Olympic and International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI) equestrian disciplines. The English saddle has less leather and is lighter than most Western saddles.
Source Europress Encyclopedia
Animal skins, or some crude type of fabric, fastened under the horse's belly, served as the earliest covers. Such saddle-like equipment were used by Assyrian cavalry around 700 BC. Some of the sculptured horses in the Parthenon, Athens, distinctly show such saddle cloths.
The stirrup, a light frame or ring that holds the foot of a rider, attached to the saddle by a strap, was one of the milestones in saddle development. The nomadic tribes in northern China are thought to have been the inventors of the modern stirrup.
The proper type of saddle, fitted to the horse's back, with a stirrup, was known to the fourth-century Byzantines, who first came across them in their clashes with the barbarian Asiatic horsemen. The Byzantines adopted it from them as they realized, the saddle with foot support enabled the warrior to throw the spear or to shoot the arrow so much better.
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| Reconstructed Roman military saddle (4-horn design) By MatthiasKabel |
The 4th century saddle can be discerned upon the frieze of the column erected at Constantinople in honor of the Roman Emperor Theodosius who, in an edict of AD 385, had limited the weight of a saddle to 60 lbs (27 kg).
The Western saddle is used for horse activities where the rider must work cattle. It was developed from the Spanish saddles that were brought by the Spanish Conquistadors when they came to the Americas. These saddles were adapted to suit the needs of vaqueros and cowboys of California, Mexico and Texas.
Unlike the English saddle the Western saddle has a horn on the front. This was used originally for tying the rope to, so when a cow was roped it would be tied to the saddle.
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| Western saddle By Modification by Montanabw, original image by Borsi112 |
The English saddle is used for horse sports like show jumping, dressage, and eventing. It is also used in all of the Olympic and International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI) equestrian disciplines. The English saddle has less leather and is lighter than most Western saddles.
Source Europress Encyclopedia
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