Pole or shaft bells

This set of open (liberty) bells was fastened to a horse-drawn vehicle rather than directly to the horse.

The three narrow straps buckle around the pole (tongue) or shaft of a horse-drawn vehicle, so the bells dangle freely below. Click on "See more images" to see this set of bells slipped onto a broomstick to show how they would look when in use.

The owner asked me to recreate the original strap as closely as possible using medium brown leather. The center strap that holds the bells is about 17" long and 2 1/4" wide. 

I was able to reuse the buckles from the two narrow straps that remained, but most of the center strap, including its buckle, was entirely missing. I found a similar buckle in my stash of old hardware to use on the re-created center strap.

This particular item is a custom, one-of-a-kind project made for a past client. Items in this Custom Projects section are for information only; they are not available for regular sale.