Ooooh, Baby, It's Cold Outside

Well, not really all that cold for January here in “the dark and bloody ground”. That’s “Kentucky” to us interlopers who pushed out the original inhabitants. I was casting about in my mind, trawling for a subject to write a post about, when I snagged this. I love this old thing.



You can’t tell scale from the pic, so here are the measurements—it is 5 ft. wide by 4 ft. tall. I’ve never put it on a scale, but I would guesstimate 10 pounds or so. Any guesses? Think “dashing through the snow, in a one-horse open sleigh”. Yep, you got it. It’s a lap robe. I acquired this at an auction on a cold and rainy day in an unheated building about 15 years or so ago. It was the end of a long day, and most of the buyers were leaving after the high dollar furniture stuff was gone. It was a good day for those with stamina and nowhere better to be. It is in remarkable shape for its age. The material it is woven out of feels like burlap, scratchy and strong. But since you weren’t supposed to be nekkid under it, I guess the scratchy doesn’t really matter. The backing is solid black and it is stuffed with what appears to be horse hair for insulation. I don’t know anything about the process used to color it.



If you look closely at the pony’s neck you can see a couple of small spots of red that are out of place, so maybe some hand dyeing on the picture in the center. I guess the roses blooming in the background were to make you feel warmer, or remind you that warmer weather would eventually return. Another indication that it was owned by “gentlefolk” is that the pony still has his original glass eye. The faithful hound’s has been lost to the ages. If I had lived back when this was new, and had been picking out a lap robe to keep me warm, this would have been my choice of design. It features my two favorite members of the animal kingdom, horses and dogs. I don’t believe I could improve on the color scheme either. It amazes me that the colors are still so rich after all this time. It makes me wish I was psychic or sensitive, if there is such a thing. I would love to be able to drape this over my lap, and be transported back to a simpler time, living in a family that had the expendable income for such niceties. By it’s very existence, it implies that the household had it’s own stable, complete with conveyances and the horse power to convey them. They also had the luxury of free time to spend traveling to visit neighbors or family, or to town for shopping or church services, even in the winter. Maybe school programs, Christmas parties, and dances where the young folk could begin the courting ritual to find a suitable mate. I would imagine a young couple could get to know each other fairly well snuggled together under this heavy robe. If they were so inclined; I mean, folks were still folks, even back then. Necking was not invented by Henry Ford. And if you were lucky enough to acquire a snappy, flashy, high-stepping piece of horseflesh to pull your buggy or sleigh, you wouldn’t want just any dull, serviceable lap robe to ruin the eye-catching, head-turning picture you would present. I imagine the brisk air and the reds and maroons in this robe would accent the blush of health on the cheek of any young lady that availed herself of it’s comfort and warmth. It is an article that has no real counterpart here in the 21st century. Whenever I handle it, though, I can’t help but feel like it held good memories for someone. Surely, it wasn’t just luck that it has survived the passage of so many years in this good shape. It must have been stored away in a trunk somewhere, when it outlived it’s usefulness. It definitely was not left in the stable or barn or carriage house for the mice to find and nibble on, so it meant something to someone. They needn’t worry about it’s fate. As long as I am the custodian of this gorgeous piece of the past, it is still special to someone.