Since we often got the question of why horseshoes bring good luck, we did a thorough investigation into it. As a result, we still don't know exactly. But what we did discover is that the belief in horseshoes is centuries old and widespread throughout the world. We liked that discovery so much that we made a summary of it. In our opinion, this page is the most complete summary available on the Internet. If you have any additions to make, please let us know.

Saint Dunstan with the devil

Year 900

We find the first mention of a lucky horseshoe in the story of St. Dunstan. He lived in England from 909 - 988. The story that Gutenberg wrote about him tells that as a blacksmith he was visited one evening by the devil who asked him to shoe him with new horseshoes. St. Dunstan quickly recognized the devil and put one of his glowing blacksmith's rods on his nose. He made the devil promise never to enter a house where a horseshoe was present. We suspect that is also where the expression “taking someone by the nose” comes from. The king of the court was so pleased with Dunstan that he immediately appointed him bishop. An edition of Gutenberg depicts many beautiful woodcuts of St. Dunstan and the devil.

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An ostrich with a horseshoe in its beak

Year 1000

Around this time, books were still written by hand by monks and illuminated with beautiful pictures. This was an enormous amount of work; from that time comes the term “monks' work. (The art of printing had not yet been invented). On the page opposite is a picture of an ostrich with a horseshoe in its beak. Remarkably, we have come across such an image much more often on gable stones and family coats of arms. Even Shakespeare wrote about it in Henry VI Part II Jack Cade: “make thee eat iron like an ostrich. Why it is an ostrich we have not yet been able to discover.

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Family arm Chernihiv

Year 1100

The Chernihiv family (also corrupted to Chernitzkoff, Czernichow, Czernichew, Tchernichov, or Tchernychevwas) consisted of famous knights in Poland in the 12th century. Their family coat of arms is the oldest we could find with a horseshoe. From later dates we came across many more coats of arms. The Chernihiv family had a wild history with a lot of wealth. Again, the horseshoe appeared to bring good luck.

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Good luck horseshoes in Oakham Castle

Year 1200

News of St. Dunstal must have spread like wildfire. A protector against the devil, there was a need for that around 1,200. In the town of Rutland, England, there is a church from 1229 that they immediately filled with horseshoes (and not the smallest ones either!). Apparently the devil was a big problem in those days. There are now more than 200 horseshoes, all with the closed side up. According to the caretaker, this prevents the devil from making a nest in the horseshoe. The first documented horseshoe was donated by Edward IV in 1470.

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Amulet made around 1350

Year 1300

In these years, people traveled quite a bit and it was often a dangerous undertaking. Travelers therefore often carried an amulet. This was always good against devils, witches and other evils. From 1300 we see that more and more often a horseshoe was depicted on an amulet. It was easier to carry than a real horseshoe. This amulet was found just west of Westminster Abbey in London. It is copper, 16.1 mm in diameter and weighs 1.2 grams. It was made around 1350.

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Bottom right of the horseshoe in the Master sign

Year 1400

This beautiful engraving copper engraving was made in 1450 and now hangs in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Its description; “The lamentation of Christ in a shrine with six other representations from the life of Christ” . Beautiful, but what is special: the engraver has in his master's mark (bottom right) a horseshoe. And it brought him good luck: he has many other works hanging in the Rijksmuseum.

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Fatehpur Sikri - Horseshoe gate with horseshoes

Year 1500

Fatehpur Sikri (City of Victory) is famous in India and founded in 1570 in honor of a Muslim saint. One of the buildings has become famous for its “horseshoe gate. It is a huge door that over the centuries has been completely filled with used horseshoes. We can see from this that the belief in horseshoes blew over from England to India in a few centuries. And that it was not limited to the Christian faith, but that Muslims embraced it as well.

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Facing brick in Amsterdam

Year 1600

Throughout Europe, people now knew that the devil would not enter a house where a horseshoe was hung. A very solid way to do that was to depict a horseshoe in a gable stone. From 1600 on, you see these becoming more common. The bigger and more expensive the house, the more horseshoes were carved into stone. This is one of the oldest we could find.

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Mast of the HMS Victory with a horseshoe nailed to it

Year 1700

Sailors were superstitious! Mermaids, the great Kraken, the Flying Dutchman, they had plenty of time to let their imaginations run wild. A famous sailor in those days was Admiral Nelson who won many battles with his ship HMS Victory. Nelson was also superstitious. On every ship on which he sailed he had a horseshoe nailed to the foremast. The photo on the right shows part of the mast of HMS Victory, with the horseshoe still on it. Unfortunately, this horseshoe did not bring Nelson enough luck: he was killed on the ship by a musket ball from the French at the naval battle of Trafalgar.

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Still Life - Violin and Music -1888

Year 1800

Art also discovered horseshoes. Apparently they were already so well established that horseshoes were included in a still life. This beautiful painting hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York. It was created by William Harnett. His work, meanwhile, hangs in many museums around the world.

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Year 1900

From this time we found many more “lucky charms. This is a kind of paper clip we saw for sale on eBay (since sold for € 195).

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Postcard from 1910

We ourselves already have quite a collection of old postcards with horseshoes from this period. We have reprinted a set.

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George H.W. Bush around 1990

Jaar 1920

Starting in 1920, “horseshoe pitching” became popular. It is a sport, which involves throwing a horseshoe around an iron peg in the ground. We regret that they no longer use real horseshoes for it, but a shoe with “hooks” on it that makes it easier to keep it around the stake. Right now the sport is wildly popular in the USA and Canada. USA and Canada.

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Howard Clock Corp. electric horse head and horseshoe clock with cast aluminum base circa 1930's

Year 1930

Horseshoe clocks are also fashionable. Check out this beautiful clock Art Deco style. It was made in 1930 so you still have to wind it by hand. The dial reads “Good Luck” in subtle letters. A beauty of an asset for only $99 on eBay.

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Niels Bohr and Albert Einstein. Photo by Paul Ehrenfest

Year 1940

Science discovers Good luck horseshoes! Niels Bohr (left in photo), a great scientist and friend of Albert Einstein (right) was interviewed by a journalist. He saw a horseshoe hanging on Niels' wall and asked, dismayed, “but professor, you as a great scholar are not superstitious, are you?”. Niels Bohr replied, “No, certainly not, but they say that horseshoes bring luck, even if you don't believe in them!”

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Year 1950

Cars got bigger and manufacturers tried to make them safer with safety belts, disc brakes and unbreakable windshields. It must have been because of this development that during this period you saw more and more horseshoes on the front of the car. You almost didn't see a Mercedes without a good luck horseshoe anymore!

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This is where astronauts pee before their journey: right next to the horseshoe

Year 1960

Russians are very superstitious. There are strong rumors that the first cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin had smuggled in a horseshoe during his first space journey. Should that indeed be the case, it certainly brought him good luck. He became a big hero in Russia after his trip.

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Elvis Presley with his good luck horseshoe ring

Year 1970

Elvis, still a phenomenon, loved glitz and glamour. During his heyday, he was often seen wearing a fabulous ring with a large horseshoe. The ring also became famous and was later copied many times. They are still for sale on eBay. This one sold at Christies for €18,000.

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Tattoo Good luck horseshoe

Year 1980

Tattoos have been almost mandatory since the 1980s. Whereas they used to be reserved for sailors (anchors) and criminals (hearts), now you see the most unusual designs walking the streets. Horseshoes are a favorite subject for tattoos, we have seen particularly exotic works of art!

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Two players from The Colts

Year 1990

Companies are increasingly incorporating a horseshoe into their logo. We have come across hundreds of them. Many of them are very successful companies. Because of the horseshoe, who knows. This picture is of two players from the Colts: a very famous team of Football players.

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Year 2000

Fashion goes far... What can we say about these shoes... Beautiful? hideous? In any case, they are extraordinary!

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Arie Gold in Entourage - Lucky Horseshoe from Good Luck Horseshoes on the wall

Year 2010

We once delivered a Giant Horseshoe to an American director. To our surprise, we saw the horseshoe back in the series Entourage where a Giant hung on the wall in the study of Arie Gold (the lead actor) for an entire season. In the final scene, Arie says goodbye to his company with much noise. All he takes with him is a family photo and his “Good luck horseshoe”!

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Sheraton Huzhou Hot Springs Resort in China

Year 2015

China opens horseshoe-shaped Sheraton Huzhou Hot Springs Resort.

Chinese architects have made a statement as the Sheraton Huzhou Hot Springs Resort prepares to open in Huzhou, China. The hotel has become famous for its unique ring shape and is referred to by some as the “horseshoe-shaped hotel.”

According to the Herald Sun, the Sheraton Huzhou Hot Springs Resort was designed by architect Ma Yangsong and engineered by the Shanghai Feizhou Group, showing its dedication to the shape of the property as it moves further into the ground. The hotel is actually a rounded oval, with two underground levels connecting to the visible doughnut shape.

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