ed of the charm which was
often supposed to go with them, love tokens are given, received, and
valued just as much as they were in the past.

Amulets.

The amulet, which in its realistic form is regarded as an antiquity to
be preserved with care, was usually regarded either as a charm against
disease, accident, or misfortune, or as something the possession of
which would bring good luck. The efficacy of amulets was believed in by
the most cultured and scientific peoples in the past, for it was an
article of belief in Egypt and Chaldea. The Jews had regard for their
phylacteries, and the Greeks and Romans had their amulets. The image of
Thor was an amulet peculiar to the old Norsemen; and in Britain we have
had many examples.

[Illustration: FIG. 84.--COLLECTION OF HARNESS AMULETS AND TEAM BELLS.

(_In the possession of Mr. Charles Wayte, of Edenbridge._)]

Although not necessarily objects to be worn, no doubt charms usually
took the form of something which could be suspended, for the origin of
the word coming to us through the Latin has been traced to an Arabic
word, signifying a pendant. In the early Christian Church the fish was
worn as a symbol or charm, and in many parts of rural England to-day
amulets are kept, and even charms, as preventives against disease. Men
and women buy so-called amulets from the jewellers' shops at the present
time, and wear them on their watch chains or bangles, and round their
necks; but the faith reposed in such charms by the educated classes in
this country may be dismissed as a myth, for few really understand their
true significance, or place any real reliance upon such fanciful relics
of a former age--an age of superstition, when people blindly clutched at
any mysterious protective power or emblem.

Horse Trappings.

Among the commoner emblems of good luck handed down from the far-off
past, are the brass amulets worn on horse trappings even to-day. A set
of brasses consists of a face brass, taking chief place of prominence on
the horse's forehead; two ear brasses, which are seen behind the ears;
ten martingale brasses, worn on the breast; and three brasses suspended
from straps on each of the shoulders. These amulets were primarily worn
to keep off the "evil eye," and thus protect the horse and its rider or
its owner from calamity and harm. The brasses were varied in design,
some of the more important being developments of the crescent moon.
Some were made to imitate the s