PORTUGAL, SPAIN, AND TRANSYLVANIA. 223 



worn in some of the countries which were invaded by the 

 Moors or Turks in the middle ages. The Portuguese, 

 according to Goodwin ' and Rev/ still employ it. It is 

 the same flat plate of iron, with a sharp ridge round the 

 outer edge, like the Syrian, Persian, Barbary, and Turkish 

 shoes, but in substance it is thicker. It is flat on both 

 sides ; the nail-holes are of an oblong square shape, very 

 large, and extend far into the shoe, which is nearly round, 

 covering the bottom of the foot, except a small hole in 

 the centre. The heel, however, unlike the others, is 

 turned down to the ground, for greater security in travel- 

 ling. The principle of nailing is the same as in the 

 French shoeing, and being flat on both sides, is superior 

 to both, in the opinion of Mr Goodwin (fig. 77). 



Spain preserves the upturned 

 heels, the plane surfaces, and the cir- 

 cular, sharp, projecting rim of the 

 Oriental shoe. This may be accepted 

 as a proof that the Moors shod their 

 horses while occupying Spain ; but as 

 another proof that shoeing was prac- 

 tised in the nth century, in the time 

 of the Cid, we has^e the story of King 

 Alphonso escaping from the captivity imposed upon him by 

 Ali Maymon, the Moorish King of Toledo, and a certain 

 Count Pedro Anserez, or Peransures, advising him to 

 have his horse's shoes nailed on in reverse — heels to toe, 

 and so mislead his pursuers. Alphonso effected his 

 escape, though it is not mentioned whether this cunning 



' New System of Shoeing Horses, p. 167. 

 " Traite de Marechalerie Veterinaire, p. 469. Lyons, 18^52. 



fig- 77 



