horse carriage ,riding knowlege and information

Qin Shi Huang was buried in his mausoleum, with the famous Terracotta Army, near modern day Xi’an (Shaanxi province).

For 2000 years, a secret army of clay soldiers protected the hidden tomb of China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang. Until 1974 none knew of its existence; now Chinese archaeologists are gradually unfolding the mystery.

These bronze horse carriage (chariots), excavated in November 1980, were two groups of imperial chariots: Four of “security� and four high ones. High chariots, driven by drivers wearing swallow-tailed caps, battle robes and swords preceded the “security� chariots ridden by drivers sitting back to the rear. The castings are in proportions half the size of live men, horses and carriages. These vivid excavations are precious bronze arts.

There have two kinds of horse carriages(chariots).

1.”Rong” horse carriage:

Two wheels ,single shaft and four horses driving .The size is 126cm * 70cm.The front and two side of horse carriages ,there have  block board ,you only can get on from rear of horse carriages (chariots) .And there  have one umbrella at the top of horse carriage.

2.Four saddle horse carriage:

The size of horse carriages (chariot) is : 317 cm* 106.2cm
There have oval cover on the horse carriage.You will see there have one driver in the  front of carriage and the empress room in the rear of horse carriage.Lots of decorative design is on the horse carriage body.

wooden horse carriage was invented by Lu Ban (~ 507-444 BC) during the period of China’s Era of Spring and Autumn.

His real name was Gongshu Ban ,because he was from the State of Lu, he was most commonly referred to as Lu Ban from records. Lu Ban is well notable for his achievements after his subject to the state of Lu.

According to ancient Chinese records, a walking machine namely “Wooden Horse Carriage� (a device that mimics the horse using mechanical legs) by Lu Ban might be created before the time of Christ. This design was treated as a novelty and quickly disappeared.

It first appeared in Chapter Ru Zang of Lun Heng  written by Wang Chong In East Hang Dynasty . It states: “It is said that Lu Ban was mourning of the loss of his mother. He built a wooden horse carriage that was well equipped and needed no manual intervention. When his mother rode on, it sped away never to return.

First century BCE Romans used spring wagons for overland journeys. With the decline of the these civilizations these techniques almost disappeared.

In 1601 a short-lived law was passed in England banning the use of carriages by men, it being considered effeminate. It was said that the Hungarian town of Koczi gave its name to this comfortable vehicle. The wagon of Koczi became popular in Europe as  Kutsche, Koets, Coach, Coche et cetera. The luxury of springs facilitated travelling and from then on various types of carriages were built.

in the 17th century,Better spring vehicles were developed .

in the 18th century,steel blades replaced the leather springs. Industrially produced springs, axles and other metal parts improved the quality of the carriages. Moreover, it was possible to lower the production costs and to develop numerous different models based on standard parts. Every local cartwright could design his own coach.New lighter and more fashionably varied conveyances, with fanciful new names, began to compete with one another.

The 19th century was the Golden Age of the carriage.Cartwrights became industrialists. Carriage factories were founded in many countries.Few rich Europeans continued to use their posting coaches for long-distance travel: a first-class railway carriage was the faster modern alternative. the 1890s, just as automobiles came into use, “coaching” became an upper-class sport in Britain .

 Horse-drawn carriages were once common worldwide, but they have mostly been replaced by automobiles and other forms of self-propelled transport.Now Horse Carriages have become antiquities, and nowadays only one type is still in development: the marathon horse carriages (Now we have many kinds of marathon carriages).

Horse carriage railway  is on the streets in the laying of track, with two horses drawn on the track on the urban public transport vehicle. Now this sounds unfamiliar of transport people, But  in the early 20th century, the Fengtian (formerly known as Shenyang) is very popular vehicle.

Fengtian(Shenyang) horse  carriages  railway in the first opening in the January 4, 1908 which is  4.03 kilometers distance . According to the recorded information  ,These horse carriages made of iron body ,wodden structure.Inside horse carriage body have two long wooden chairs, and the passenger sitting opposite, non-seat passengers standing Meanwhile, The bar at the top of the seat set up to help standing passengers.

  At that time, the railway carriage was seen as the advanced modes of public transport, welcomed by the public people.

 In September 1924 , the Fengtian operators of the 16 railway carriages, finally withdrew from the stage of history.

In 2006, the first National Postal Museum - Shanghai Postal Museum opened in China. It focused on heritage conservation in the National Post building units in Shanghai, covering 8,000 square meters. Shanghai Museum is the General Post Office in 1909 to transport mail rented horse carriage . there are 1917 Shanghai Postal Authority for the purchase of transport vehicles (model). Heritage Museum of postal traffic to reproduce the history and changes.

Shanghai Postal Museum

The most ancient horse carriage made in Shang Dynasty (BC1600—BC1046) in China. Pleases see the following discovered in Anyang city ,Henan province.

Experts compare these horse carriages spoke with  the West hrose carriages, that they are part of the same system, very common source.

Horse carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn. It is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light, smart and fast or heavy, large and comfortable. Carriages normally have suspension using leaf springs, elliptical springs (in the 19th century) or leather strapping. A public passenger vehicle would not usually be called a carriage – terms for these include stagecoach, charabanc and omnibus.The word carriage (abbreviated carr or cge) is from Old Northern French cariage, to carry in a vehicle. The word car, then meaning a kind of two-wheeled cart for goods, also came from Old Northern French about the beginning of the 14th century; it was also used for railway carriages, and was extended to cover automobile around the end of the nineteenth century, when early models were called horseless carriages.

A carriage is sometimes called a team, as in “horse and team”. A carriage with its horse is a rig. An elegant horse-drawn carriage with its retinue of servants is an equipage. A carriage together with the horses, harness and attendants is a turnout or setout. A procession of carriages is a cavalcade.

Welcome to visit our horse carrriage blog