A travalje , also known as a hoof stable , was originally a wooden construction in which the (farmer's) draft horse could be secured to be trimmed and shod by the farrier . The horse was secured in this construction, bounded by wooden beams at the front, side and back. Once secured in the travalje, the horse could hardly get out. By means of iron chains (sometimes ropes were used) the stable boys could keep the hooveseasier lifting. The chains or ropes went around the leg once and were then lifted onto the wooden beam and then twisted the chain around the leg and wooden beam once more. The farrier could trim and/or shoe the hoof without running the risk of getting a kick or taking the full weight of the horse on him
Origin
The travalje dates from the mid-18th century and is probably French in origin. The French armies carried a mobile travalje with them in a cart, so that the horses could be maintained by a blacksmith along the way. Before the arrival of the travalje, the horses in the Netherlands were simply tied to the wall of the farm for shoeing.
Travaljes can be found mainly in large parts of Zeeland and part of South Holland, and in Belgium. They were often placed near the blacksmith shop, usually in the longitudinal direction of the facade, and had a central function in the village. A few had one inside, but most of the travaljes were in the open air, some covered.
Addition to yesterday's photo. Two thousand years ago, the northern border of the immense Roman Empire ran straight through the present-day Netherlands, along the Rhine: the Limes. To guard these, the Romans built watchtowers, roads, waterways and army camps along the river. Many remains have been preserved in the ground in this old border region, making the Limes the largest archaeological monument in the Netherlands. In 2021, this Lower Germanic Limes, the official name of this part of the border, was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Ian