Pair of Rowel Spurs

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Each of these impressive spurs is adorned on the heel band with delicate pierced decoration featuring lions walking among vegetal scrolls. Small birds and a swan inhabit its long curved neck, which holds a large rowel. While the pierced decoration was influenced by the importation, via Spain, of horse equipment made in Southern Germany in the 16th and 17th centuries, as well as by Chinese textiles, 18th-century Mexican spurs like these examples, in addition to bits and stirrups, often feature native designs and animals, such as birds and monkeys. Only a few very skilled spur makers, mostly working in Mexico City, were able to create such metalwork. Some parts, like the neck, are made out of a single iron sheet, sliced and curled to create the iron scrolls and their small birds. The pieces were usually heated several times during their manufacture, giving the metal a shiny appearance meant to imitate silver. Impressive, but highly impractical, these spurs would have been used during ceremonies and festivals as a mark of status, speaking to the importance of horses in traditional Mexican society.

Arms and Armor

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The principal goals of the Arms and Armor Department are to collect, preserve, research, publish, and exhibit distinguished examples representing the art of the armorer, swordsmith, and gunmaker. Arms and armor have been a vital part of virtually all cultures for thousands of years, pivotal not only in conquest and defense, but also in court pageantry and ceremonial events. Throughout time the best armor and weapons have represented the highest artistic and technical capabilities of the society and period in which they were made, forming a unique aspect of both art history and material culture.

Metropolitan Museum of Art