Decorated Bridles: Horse Tack in Plains Biographic Rock Art

Abstract

Decorated horse bridles are probably the most common horse tack shown in Plains biographic art. Painted on robes, drawn in ledgers, and incised or painted as rock art from northern Mexico to southern Alberta, these images illustrate the emphasis placed on horse finery by Plains and Southwestern Indian cultures. Rock art is replete with these decorated bridles. A cursory literature review identified more than 25 sites with illustrated examples, located from northern Mexico through nine of the United States and into southern Canada at Writing-On-Stone, Alberta. Given the number of these rock art images and the wealth of comparative material from historical sources and recently published robe art and ledger drawings, we have identified and described seven distinct types of bridle decorations in Plains rock art. These decorations provide clues to ethnic identity of the artists and illuminate the extent of trade networks and intertribal alliances that extended across the region and into the American Southwest.