This is a two-book set including Powder Horns: Documents of History and The Hartley Horn Drawings

Powder Horns: Documents of History by Tom Grinslade

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Full-color photographs and details of antique powder horns from the 17th to the 19th centuries.

Over 180 powder horns are included in this full-color, beautifully illustrated book. Powder Horns: Documents of History emphasizes the beauty of these handmade works of art as well as their historical significance. Unlike other works that have focused solely on the artistic merit of these creations, author Tom Grinslade relates each horn, as much as possible, to where it was made and the events that were occurring at the time. Horns from the 17th century to the first quarter of the 19th century are included, representing the period from Queen Anne's War to the Revolutionary War and beyond into the early years of our nation.

This study offers an intriguing glimpse into the lives of the original owners of these horns, as well as their makers. Particularly evocative are the unfinished horns, leaving one to wonder why they weren't finished and what happened to interupt the work. Powder Horns: Documents of History sheds light on an important cultural artifact and the times during which they were produced. Perhaps unlike any other publication, this book give these artifacts the importance they deserve as both the creative expression of their maker and as a document of the culture that produced them.

The Hartley Horn Drawings: A Collection of Powder Horn Drawings by Robert M Hartley

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Hand-drawn illustrations of historic powder horns along with numerous photographs and descriptive text.

Robert M. Hartley was a contemporary of Rufus Grider, whose vast collection of powder horn drawings is widely known. Hartley began to make his own drawings after Grider's death as an extension of Grider's work documenting historic powder horns. Hartley used Grider's style, which he describes as "inscription map-like" in an attempt to best illustrate as much of the decoration on the horns as possible.

The drawings illustrated in this book are held by the Margaret Reaney Memorial Library in St. Johnsville, New York. Although there are believed to be as many as 62 Hartley drawings, this book reproduces all forty drawings held by the Reaney Library. All drawings in this book are dated between 1933 and 1938.

Following the reproductions of the drawings themselves is an analysis of design elements in the Hartley drawings and close-up photos of many examples of these elements, including: the Royal Coat of Arms, rivers, cities and towns, forts and animals.