Bucephalus (brand)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bucephalus (Gr "ox-headed", from βους, "ox", and κεφαλή, "head") was a type of branding mark anciently used on horses. It was one of the three most common, besides Σ, Sigma, and Κ, Kappa. Those horses marked with a Σ were called Συμφοραι; those with a Κ, Κοππαγίαι; and those with an ox's head, βουκεφαλοι, Bucephali.

This mark was stamped on the horse's buttocks, and his harnesses, as appears from the scholiast on Aristophanes's The Clouds, Hesychius, etc.

This article incorporates content from the 1728 Cyclopaedia, a publication in the public domain.