If you love horses, chances are there is a little collection of horse ‘stuff’ in your home. You might have paintings, books or a throw on your couch with a horse on it. Some people take that ‘stuff’ to the next level and become full out collectors. Here’s a look at just a few things a horse lover can collect.
Stamps
I had a large stamp collection when I was a kid and my favorite stamps to collect were horse themed stamps. It seems rare to use stamps now at all, and I don’t know anyone who collects stamps anymore. Sadly, my horse stamp collection is long gone. But, there are still people out there who do, and topical stamps featuring horses are still quite collectible. Stamps don’t take up a lot of room and this isn’t a terribly expensive hobby to get into. And, there are some really beautiful miniature works of art on postage stamps. eBay is an obvious source of topical horse stamps or any other subject you might want to explore.
Coins
Along the same lines as stamp collecting is coin collecting. There have been many issues of horses themed stamps. One example of a horse themed coin I’m familiar with is the Canadian Mountie Quarter issued way back in 1973 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the RCMP. The joke back then was to ask someone what kind of horse the Mountie was riding. It was a quarter horse, of course. There are different kinds of coins. The kind in your change wallet are for spending, but collector coins are for collecting, often with the hope they will increase in value over time. Examples would be the 2017 Australian stock horse coin and the 2010 Irish horse set. Most coins that come to us through the banks aren’t worth more than face value. But, sometimes they are. About 10,000 of the 135 million Mountie quarters minted were stamped with the wrong back and they are worth anywhere from $100 to $300 depending on their condition. And Mounties don’t really ride Quarter Horses - they are warmbloods from their own breeding program.
Models
Breyers, Painted Ponies, even My Little Pony dolls are popular collector items and collectors enjoy customizing and showing off their models. Models are known by their makers and include Stone, Julips, Hagen-Renakers, Beswick, Hartland and many more.
Plates, Mugs, and Spoons
There was a time when it seemed like every cozy home had a rack of collector spoons hanging in the breakfast nook. People still collect spoons and there are issues of horse-themed ones, usually souvenirs for state events or from company promotions. There are lots of horse-themed collector plates too. Bradford Exchange is a well-known company that produces sets of horse plates. Of course, this type of collecting could extend to mugs, salt and pepper shakers, teapots, beer steins and glasses and just about every other eating and drinking utensil.
Harness Brasses and Bells, and Other Decoration
There are still horse brasses being made, but the most collectible are antique or vintage. They were popular for decorating horse harnesses during the 1800s. Today, they are collector's items. Bells too are popular collector's items. Used originally to warn other drivers that a team was trotting down the road, especially when the snow banks were high, bells, chimes, and the type of bells we know as jingle bells are now collector's items. Bridle decoration, saddle conchos, even stirrups are collectible.
Bits
Many of the bits used in the time of real horsepower are no longer used. Today they d make very interesting collector's items. Some collectors collect only one type of bit, such as those used during the time of the old west, driving bits or other specific types. Some go for the most antiquated they can find. The more rusty and primitive, the better.
So do you collect anything horse themed? Books, horseshoes--or maybe just horses?
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