Cowboys' spurs were both practical and dressy. They helped the working cowboy control his horse, and they often were made of beautiful combinations of silver and iron -- showing off the cowboy's dressy side and reflecting something of his material success.
According to his fascinating book "Cowboy Culture," writer David Dary says spurs were first used in the Old West by Mexican vaqueros. Dary also says a primitive type of spur has been traced by some historians back to 700 B.C. By the 1400s A.D., he says, "spurs were a mark of rank for old World cavaliers, knights, and caballeros; the right to wear spurs was then awarded only by a feudal lord or king."
Dary's book has some fascinating drawings of humongous spurs and rowels, some of them as large as saucers with multiple points and long, curved shanks.
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In a great description of the two main types of Old West spurs -- the smaller Plains style, the larger Californio style -- Winfred Blevins' "Dictionary of the American West" suggests that some of the fancier, larger Californio style spurs were so big that the wearers couldn't walk in them.
Blevins also explains that those who suggest that spurs lead to cruelty are generally not riders. In his words, "In fact, they're only as severe as the man using them." Blevins says that good spurs properly used serve as "reminders and emergency starters," not something rough on the horse or the rider.
