Âé¶¹´«Ã½

Horse-human relationship goes back further than thought

11 March 2009

THE steppes of Kazakhstan may be where a human first decided to climb onto a horse, creating the earliest form of land transport.

“Horse domestication was a landmark, a bit like the invention of the wheel,” says of the University of Exeter in the UK.

Outram and colleagues found “horse farms” in Kazakhstan’s , dated to 3500 BC, pushing back the domestication of horses by 1000 years.

The team studied bones from four settlements. More than 90 per cent were horse bones, and wear on the animals’ teeth shows that they wore bits and bridles.

The…

Sign up to our weekly newsletter

Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox. We'll also keep you up to date with Âé¶¹´«Ã½ events and special offers.

Sign up

To continue reading, today with our introductory offers

or

Existing subscribers

Sign in to your account
Piano Exit Overlay Banner Mobile Piano Exit Overlay Banner Desktop