Horse's hoof inkwell belonging to Captain William Tyrwhitt Drake, Royal Horse Guards, 1829 (c)

This inkwell was made by Farrier Thomas Lee, Royal Horse Guards, and is inscribed 'Presented to William T Drake, late Lieutenant-Colonel in Token of Respect April 1829'.

The practice of turning a beloved horse into an objet d'art was commonplace in the 19th and early 20th centuries. While it may seem odd and even macabre today, for the horses' owners these items were a way of celebrating and remembering their animal companions.