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A highly unusual English Medieval bone figure of a man on horseback, probably a toy, dating to the 13th -15th Century.
This charming figure was found near London Bridge on the foreshore of the River Thames. It almost certainly represents an extremely early example of a child's toy, discarded in the Thames over seven hundred years ago. The carved figure, possibly a knight, sits leaning forwards atop a moving horse. He wears a long baggy robe and holds the reins of the horse with both hands. The horse is shown with his head tilted slightly to the side, with whorl-decorated armour at the front and on his upper-back legs.
This artifact would probably have been the favoured possession of a child from a reasonably wealthy medieval family. It may have been played with by itself or with other figures in a 'cowboys and Indians' style game. Only a very limited number of toys have been discovered from this period and they are changing our understanding of medieval society.1,2 Although a figure similar to this has been found in pewter, we have struggled to find anything similar in bone, and this may well be the only example extant.
London in the Medieval period was a dirty city and the Thames was akin to a giant refuse bin. Everything from sewage to household waste was thrown into the dirty river. Up to the 1500's this rubbish was used to backfill the embankments of the river to prevent flooding. So-called Mudlarks have, since the advent of the metal-detector, searched these ancient embankments, now located on the Thames foreshore, for relics of bygone days. This artifact constitutes one of the finest such Mudlark finds.
The figure may be inspired by tales of the great crusades, in which pilgrims went to re-claim the holy-land. Alternatively it may be inspired by stories of the day, such as those of the great poet, Chaucer, who was approximately contemporary with this piece and whose characters were often depicted on horseback.
A remarkable artifact. Possibly originally discarded owing to a fracture of the horse's right front leg, apparently sustained in antiquity.
Length: 2 3/4 inches.
Height: Just under 3 inches.
Condition: Unrestored. A very well preserved piece of bone, saved from disintegration by the damp conditions of the Thames mud.
Provenance: Ex collection Mr. M, Thames Mudlark for many years. Originally discovered near London Bridge, Thames Foreshore, London.
References:
1 http://redstarcafe.wordpress.com/2008/04/08/thames-mudlarks-dig-up-medieval-toys/
2 http://www.representingchildhood.pitt.edu/medieval_child.htm
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