Horses and dogs sailed with Vikings to Britain, say scientists

By Georgina RannardClimate and science reporterBBC News Vikings sailing from Scandinavia to England brought horses, dogs and perhaps even pigs with them, according to analysis of bone remains. Invading Vikings were previously thought to have largely stolen animals from villages in Britain. The findings also provide evidence Viking leaders had a close relationship with animals…

It’s National Horse Day 2021

It's National Horse Day. National Horse Day is celebrated every December 13. Horses have woven themselves into the fabric of American life. Civilization was built on the back of a horse. December 13 is a day to acknowledge and express gratitude for the economic, historic, and cultural contributions that horses have made. Equine enthusiasts across…

Ancient DNA points to origins of modern domestic horses

Genetic analysis shows that the ancestors of all modern horses lived in the Western Eurasian steppes more than 4,000 years ago. Via Nature.org » QUOTE Archaeologists have used ancient DNA samples to identify the genetic homeland of modern horses, where the animals were first domesticated around 4,200 years ago. According to a study published in Nature on…

Cave artists put horses on a pedestal

Rhys Blakely, Science Correspondent for the TIMES of London, writes: For 20,000 years Europe’s Stone Age artists focused on a particular menagerie. Using secluded caves as their canvas, they painted bison, mammoths, ibex, and wild ox. During all that time, however, one species occupied a special place in their thoughts — the horse. New research…

Foto Friday: Millennia old hillside chalk carvings of horses in England

  England’s Centuries-Old Fascination With Carving Giant Horses Into Hillsides The country’s unbridled enthusiasm for the trend even inspired the creation of the term “leucippotomy.” BY KERRY WOLFE ENGLAND (Atlas Obscura, July 20, 2017) — AFTER AN ANCIENT CARVING OF a horse appeared on a hill three millennia ago, giant white horses became a symbol of…

Commemorate the contribution horses have made to civilization with us

Horses were first domesticated in around 3500 BC, probably on the steppes of southern Russia and Kazakhstan, and introduced to the Ancient Near East in about 2300 BC. Before this time, people used donkeys as draught animals and beasts of burden. The adoption of the horse was one of the single most important discoveries for…

Horse Fund launches “What civilization owes the horse” t-shirt campaign

Updated 11/06/2016 RELAUNCHED CAMPAIGN! ENDS TUESDAY DECEMBER 6TH "The history of mankind is carried on the back of a horse." We have long been inspired by this quote and have turned it into a t-shirt campaign to raise awareness about the relevance to mankind of the domestication of the horse. Nigel Tallis of the British…

Tiny real-life horses of Greek Myth headed for extinction

Skyros ponies, thought to have pulled Achilles' legendary chariot, have declined to about 200 animals left on Earth. Cross-posted from the National Geographic » By Kristin Hugo Published September 27, 2016 The issues facing these special horses are manmade and sound all too familiar. -Ed. The breed that may have pulled Achilles’ legendary chariot is…

Native American artist brings 900 horses back to life in Spokane

Horses massacred by U.S. Army in 1858 to break spirit of Washington territory tribes now commemorated in mural Cross-posted from Aljazeera America By KEVIN TAYLOR Link to full article » SPOKANE, Wash. — In 1858, when Col. George Wright ordered U.S. Army soldiers to massacre 900 horses they took from the Native American tribes of…

Canada — History Comes to Life: The Horse Drive of Harry Adair

Play brings story of Harry Adair to the stage this weekend CANADA -- The South Peace Regional Archives and the Friends of the SPRA Society will be putting on an event featuring an original play about the Horse Drive of Harry Adair at the Scenic Heights Community Grounds on Sunday afternoon. Charlie Penson, president of…