Farmers require horses that are capable of pulling hefty loads. Soldiers need horses that can manoeuvre quickly and have guts, while racers need skinny, high-strung horses that can sprint fast. Horses have been “selectively bred” over the years to satisfy these and other purposes. Male and female horses with desired features are mated in selective breeding.
With a broad neck, short legs, and a huge head, Mongol horses were little yet tough. They had been “obedient, even-tempered, and well-suited to cold combat.” Horses were only utilised as beats of burden on rare occasions. In rocky terrain, oxen were utilised to pull and carry cargo, but in grass and sand, camels were preferred. Mongol youngsters learned to ride when they were about five years old.
Breeds of Horses
Horses are grouped into three categories: heavy, light, and pony. There are around 250 kinds of horse. Argentina’s Falabellas are the tiniest horses (12 to 40 inches and weighs less than 150 pounds).
It’s not always apparent whether prehistoric cave artists drew dots and lines on animals to be symbolic or accurate representations. Spots resembling those found on current Appaloosa horses can be seen in several horse representations. The spots on these horses were supposed to be meaningful for a long time. “Though dappled coats were supposed to occur only on a few modern horses, the genotype came up frequently in DNA examination of horse bones from western Europe’s Pleistocene epoch,” according to National Geographic (2.6 million to 11,700 years ago).
“I believe horses are the most important domesticated animal in history,” Ludovic Orlando, a professor of molecular archaeology at the University of Copenhagen’s Natural History Museum of Denmark, told the Washington Post. “Without horses, the history of warfare, and thus the history of humanity, would be different.” He referenced ancient commanders who used cavalry, chariots, and adept equestrians like Alexander the Great. The Washington Post’s Ben Guarino said, “Chickens kept us fed, and dogs kept us companionship.” Horses, on the other hand, allowed humans to move quicker and farther, spreading not only our offspring but also our ideas and civilizations to new lands.” [Washington Post, April 27, 2017] [Source: Ben Guarino]
Arabian Horses are horses that are native to Arabia.
Arabian horses are the world’s oldest recognised breed, according to legend. They are quick and have incredible stamina. Thoroughbreds, which are descended from them, dominate both horse racing and 100-mile long distance rides. The horses’ arched throats and “proud” necks permit a big windpipe, allowing them to “drink the wind.” [Smithsonian magazine’s Jennifer Lee Carrell]
“Arabians appear distinct from other horses like fairy-tale princes and princesses look different from peasants,” Jennifer Lee Carrell wrote in Smithsonian magazine. They have swan-like curves in their necks and carry their tails high. Their heads are exquisitely chiselled, and their faces feature widely spread cheekbones, often known as jowls, that sweep into a muzzle delicate enough to drink from a teacup.”
Arabians are often huge horses. Their legs are wiry, their bones are long, and their shoulders are straight. The perfect horse, according to Arabs, must have a crescent-shaped neck and a nose small enough to fit into a tea cup. Caravans were occasionally accompanied by Arabians. When the caravan was attacked or a rider attacked a foe, they were usually ridden. Occasionally, prized horses were given their own tents.
Arabian horses, according to mythology, date back to the period of Queen Sheeba, who is claimed to have given one to King Solomon. Bedouins developed the first Arabians to speed across the sand, withstand the harsh desert, and engage in battles and raids. An entire herd of camels could be worth a single reproductive female.
In the year 800 A.D., Arabians were first bred. They’re somewhat concave “Arabian horses have the same dished face as those shown in Greek and Roman art, implying that they have been bred for almost 2,000 years.
Early Bedouins nurtured and put their horses to the test. To toughen them up, they were forced to run in the scorching heat for months on end, surviving solely on camel milk and crushed dates. Horses that failed to pass the test frequently died. Special attention was given to prized mares and their foals, who were carried inside the tents with the humans during violent sandstorms.
Mongolian steeds
Thoroughbred horses have their origins in the Middle East. All current thoroughbreds are descended from one of three Arabian sires who were imported to England: 1) Byerly Turk (1680-1696), taken from the Turkish army at the Battle of Buda in Hungary in 1689 and employed in the Irish wars: 2) Darely Arabian (1700-30), the only pure Anazah Arabian horse, purchased in Aleppo, Syria for 300 gold sovereigns and smuggled out of Syria and brought to the British in 1706; and 3) Godolphin Barb (1724-54), born in Yemen and given to King Louis XV of France before being sold to the Earl of Godolphin.
Every one of the world’s hundreds of thousands of thoroughbred horses descended from 28 horses shipped to Britain and Ireland roughly 300 years ago—-the three males mentioned above and 25 mares—-with about 95 percent of them being Darley Arabian ancestors. The remaining 5% is made up of Byerly Turk and Godolphin Barb. Tregonwell’s mother is the most powerful of the 25 ancestral females. She is responsible for around 14% of all maternal lines. During this time, about 80 horses were imported from Egypt and Arabia, but 50 of these horses’ lines died out.
Eclipse (1764-89) was a well-known British racehorse that won 18 races without being lashed or urged. He is estimated to be the progenitor of 80 percent of today’s thoroughbreds. He is the great-great grandson of Darley Arabian.
Thoroughbreds have been so effectively bred that their endurance, lung capacity, and muscle strength are thought to be at their peak. Since the 1920s, the winners of the biggest horse races in the United Kingdom have remained unchanged. Broken bones, tendon injury, and pulmonary bleeding have all increased as a result of inbreeding.
National Geographic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Times of London, Smithsonian magazine, The New Yorker, Reuters, AP, AFP, Wikipedia, BBC, Comptom’s Encyclopedia, Lonely Planet Guides, Silk Road Foundation, Daniel Boorstin’s The Discoverers; Albert Hourani’s History of Arab People (Faber and Faber, 1991); Karen Armstrong’s Islam, a Short History (Modern Libraries,
