Horse brass

This horse brass was awarded as a merit badge to A. May by the R.S.P.C.A. (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) at the Van Horse Parade held in Regent's Park on 8 April 1912. A. May was a carman working for Sutton & Co. Carmen carried goods by horse and cart at fixed rates.

The Van Horse Parade, established in 1904, was an extension of the Cart Horse Parade which had first been held in Battersea Park in 1886. The Cart Horse Parade's declared purpose was to 'improve the general condition of and treatment of London cart horses by encouraging the drivers to take a humane interest in the animals under their charge'. Van horses were lighter than cart horses and were typically used for retail delivery. The R.S.P.C.A. supported both parades' aims and gave merit badges. In 1966, with the decline of horse transport in London, the two parades were amalgamated under the London Horse Harness Parade which is still held annually in Sussex.

The origins of horse brasses are unknown, but from the middle of the 19th century they became increasingly popular as decorations fixed to working horses' harnesses. During the 19th and early 20th centuries horses adorned with brasses were an everyday sight on London’s streets, reflecting the central role they played in London’s life and economy as the main method of short distance transport.

Horse brasses reached a peak in popularity just before World War I but during the 1920s, as motor vehicles replaced horses, they began to decline. By the 1950s they had all but disappeared from London’s streets.