Dec 17, 2011 · This copper alloy piece is known as a bit boss or bridle boss, a decorative piece used on a horse bit. It would have had two attachment holes on tabs at the top and bottom, and worn as a pair on either side of a curb style bit. Below …

Sep 24, 2023 · A friend suggested it might be a bit or bridle boss. Modern ones are mostly plain and are typically made from lead or copper alloy. But 18th century ones are often elaborately decorated and are sometimes made from cast iron.

Bit bosses were ornamental elements decorating both sides of a horse bit. This type of boss, with a classical decoration featuring scrolls and flowers circled by a leaf garland, was very popular in Western Europe around 1700.

May 14, 2014 · Bridle bosses are decorative metal pieces that were attached to the sides of some curb bits during the colonial period. They are usually made of copper alloy, and have two tabs or integrated holes that allow them to be attached to curb bits with iron or brass rivets.

Select Bridle Bits from the Colonial Period Curb Bit with Jointed Mouthpiece and Straight Cheek Pieces Absent Bridoon with Jointed Mouthpiece Bridoon with Solid Mouthpiece Curb Bit with Jointed Mouthpiece; Shown with a bridle boss on the right and no bridle boss on the left Snaffle or Watering Bit with Jointed Mouthpiece

Bit Boss. An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art. This boss, adorned with a spiral motif partly covered by foliage, decorated the side of a horse bit.

This boss, embossed on its center with a stylized scallop, bears stamped on its rim a proverb in French, partly illegible. It belongs to a large group of bosses, some inscribed with proverbs, produced in Northern France or in the Southern Netherlands during the 16th century.

#17784 - Brass US bosses on original Civil War horse bit This is an original iron Union hourse bit from Civil Wa....Click on picture for full description, more pics, etc.

Bit bosses were ornamental elements decorating both sides of a horse bit. The central part of this boss is adorned with scallop shells and volutes, while its rim displays a frieze of other scallops flanked by grotesque winged monsters.

Bit bosses were ornamental elements decorating both sides of a horse bit. This type of boss, with a classical decoration featuring scrolls and flowers circled by a leaf garland, was very popular in Western Europe around 1700.