what are "horse brasses"?

Rainer Ruine

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Mar 29, 1997, 3:00:00 AM3/29/97

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I am from Austria and I have found in a case study the phrase "to make
imitation horse brasses for the licensing trade". What does this mean?
Pleas help me! Thanks a lot!

Ross Howard

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Mar 29, 1997, 3:00:00 AM3/29/97

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"Rainer Ruine" <ha...@ping.at> wrote:

Markus is the UK pub expert, so I hope he'll tweak anything I miss or
get wrong here.

Beer barrels used to be delivered to pubs on carts drawn by dray
horses (I think at least one ultra-traditional real-ale brewery may
still do so). The tack (bridles, etc.) of these horses were decorated
with rows of brass plaques -- rather like larger and more ornate
sheriff's badges.

Many traditional pubs decorate the bar with these "horse brasses".

Incidentally, fire irons in Britain are often made of brass, and have
similar designs to horse brasses.

Now that was interesting, wasn't it.

Ross Howard

Timothy Hunt

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Mar 29, 1997, 3:00:00 AM3/29/97

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In article <01bc3c1f$5b892aa0$37ab...@b155.ping.at>,

Rainer Ruine <ha...@ping.at> wrote:
>I am from Austria and I have found in a case study the phrase "to make
>imitation horse brasses for the licensing trade". What does this mean?
>Pleas help me! Thanks a lot!
>

When the chief mode of transport on canals and rivers was the horse-drawn
barge, the people who used the horses would often decorate the saddlery
that the horse wore. The decorations were made of brass and would be attached
to the leather strapping. These are horse brasses. Some pubs whose owners
wish to give it a "traditional" look often use horse brasses on the walls.
Of course, brasses that were used on horses are becoming increasingly
rare, and so people make things that look much the same, specifically
for hanging in pubs (licensed premises).

Timothy

--
The above words are my words, and do not necessarily reflect the views of
anyone else.

j...@sunline.net

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Mar 30, 1997, 3:00:00 AM3/30/97

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In article <5hj7oo$3...@diamond.xara.net>,

Timothy Hunt <eng...@timothy.org.uk.NO.SPAM> wrote:
>
> In article <01bc3c1f$5b892aa0$37ab...@b155.ping.at>,
> Rainer Ruine <ha...@ping.at> wrote:
> >I am from Austria and I have found in a case study the phrase "to make
> >imitation horse brasses for the licensing trade". What does this mean?
> >Pleas help me! Thanks a lot!
> >
>
> When the chief mode of transport on canals and rivers was the horse-drawn
> barge, the people who used the horses would often decorate the saddlery
> that the horse wore. The decorations were made of brass and would be attached
> to the leather strapping. These are horse brasses. Some pubs whose owners
> wish to give it a "traditional" look often use horse brasses on the walls.
> Of course, brasses that were used on horses are becoming increasingly
> rare, and so people make things that look much the same, specifically
> for hanging in pubs (licensed premises).

Yes, but it's worth noting that the "licensing trade" in the original
posting may have caused confusion. In Britain the pub business in known
as the "licensed trade", because the owner or manager of each licensed
premises has to demonstrate good character to obtain a licence which
must be displayed over the entry.

Also, note that in Britain "licence" the noun is usually spelt with
a "c" and "license" the verb with an "s".
entry.

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