The earliest archeological traces of the domestication of horses

Mare milking in present-day Kirghizstan. Here, the foal is present to initiate the milk let down. Photo by Nicolas Lescureux

Article Summary

An international team of archeologists has discovered the earliest known traces to date of horse domestication by humans, dating back to 5500 years. This discovery suggests that horses were harnessed, probably for riding, and exploited for their milk. The researchers have traced the origins of horse domestication back to the Botai Culture of Kazakhstan around 5,500 years ago – about 1,000 years earlier than thought and about 2,000 years earlier than domestic horses are known to have been in Europe.

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