Introductory 5 



That done he was despoyled of his furred tabard, of his hood, 

 of his furred cotts, and of his girdle. Then Sir Anthony said 

 unto him these wordes — 'Andrew, now thou art no knight, but 

 a knaue, and for thy treason the King doth will thou shalt be 

 hanged.' " 



Also in several old documents there are references made to 

 a knight's spurs being cut off by the king's master cook with his 

 cleaver, on the occasion of his degradation. All these instances 

 point to the spur having had at that time an emblematical 

 value over and above that of mere utility. 



But in very early times it is probable that no more than 

 its practical value was given to the spur, and the early writers 

 were very reticent upon the subject. There is no mention of 

 spurs, so far as I am aware, made anywhere in the Bible. The 

 ancient Egyptians, too, have left no evidence either in tombs, or 

 on monuments, or carvings, that they used them. This absence 

 of reference to spurs by the Egyptians and by biblical writers 

 may possibly be accounted for by the fact that the Eastern 

 nations generally have always preferred to attach their goad to 

 the stirrup rather than to the foot. Numerous examples can be 

 seen even at the present day of the inner corners of the broad 

 foot-plate of the Eastern stirrup being prolonged into more or 

 less of a point, which can easily be applied to the horse's side. 

 In connection with this, an interesting survival can be seen in 

 Southern Greece at the present day. In the neighbourhood of 

 Pergos, near Olympia, I observed the natives riding with a 

 small swan-necked rowel spur, with a neck about an inch in 

 length, attached to the inner side of each stirrup, the stirrup 



