H25.172

• spanish

Stirrups, wood, Mexican make. Used in Old Mexico about 1830. "Wood blocked stirrup. Sycamore? Type used in 1850. Handmade." (Griff Durham, 6/99) From the History Information Station Object: Two carved oak stirrups made in Mexico in 1830. Stirrups were suspended from the saddle to support the rider's feet. These were attached by leather straps that passed through the rectangular holes carved in the top of each. History: Wooden stirrups were used by vaqueros in California because of the scarcity of metal. If the opening for the rider's foot seems rather small to you, it is because the vaquero did not place his entire foot in the stirrup. He was a "toe" rider, resting his feet lightly in his stirrups. This gave the vaquero his characteristic graceful manner, or posture, in the saddle. Gift of John R. Cook America's First Cowboys Spanish explorers first introduced cattle into the Western hemisphere in the 15th century. Three centuries later, herds on the Spanish missions and ranchos were multiplying at an astounding rate both in New Spain and Alta California. As cattle grazed on common, unfenced ranges, it became necessary to guard the herds from wild animals and rustlers. Lack of manpower was a problem, but the mission padres found a solution: they taught their Indian converts to ride horses and herd cattle. The cowhands came to be called vaqueros (an extension of the Spanish vaca, meaning cow, with the suffix ero, meaning "one engaged in a given occupation or activity"). The American cowboy is the direct descendent of the early mission and rancho cowhands. It was the vaquero who set the style, evolved the equipment and techniques, and developed much of the vocabulary that has come to characterize the American cowboy. Whenever he swings a lariat, rides in a rodeo, or pulls on his chaps the cowboy pays tribute to the vaquero.

Used: Mexico