Defense Secretary Mark Esper Given Mongolian Horse

On August 8, 2019, Defense Secretary Mark Esper was gifted a Mongolian hose by the government of that country during a visit.  Mongolian horses are genetically related to Icelandic horses.  Esper named the seven-year old, caramel colored horse Marshall after WW II General George Marshall.

"“He’s happy, he likes his name,” Esper said while standing beside the horse outside the Mongolian Ministry of Defense."  Esper noted that General Marshall and he shared a home town of Uniontown, Pennsylvania.

Per the article, "Marshall, who had served in China between 1924 and 1927 while an Army officer, came to Mongolia to procure horses for his infantry regiment, as the “best horses” were from the region, according to Esper.  As the story goes, a young lieutenant under Marshall’s command disciplined a stubborn horse by striking it. Marshall punished the lieutenant “because he had such high regard for Mongolian horses.”"

Esper presented the horse's caretaker with a saddle blanket with the U.S. Army Old Guard badge.  Marshall the horse will remain in Mongolia.

Charles Hagel, US Defense Secretary under Obama, was given a Mongolian horse he named Shamrock.  Donald Rumsfeld, Pentagon chief under President George W. Bush, called his horse Montana.  These horses stayed in Mongolia also.

You can view photos of Esper and his Mongolian horse via the link below.

Source: https://thehill.com/policy/defense/456657-mongolia-gives-horse-to-esper-as-us-looks-for-new-inroads-against-china

The Black Horse Logo of Lloyds Bank

I am being conditioned to tear up every time I see the black horse logo of Lloyds Bank. Check my previous post for how the horses were trained for the amazing ad.

Training Horses for the Lloyds Bank advert

Here's the behind the scene's look at how the trainers worked with the black horses to film the follow up ad for Lloyds Bank in Britain. There's some really good insight for how to humanely train horses, including use of special shoes for galloping on hard surfaces.

The Black Horse of Lloyds Bank

Llyods Bank in Britain has created a touchingly awesome about how their logo of a black horse is transmuted into a real horse to accompany and support people at major moments of their life through the 250 years of the bank's history. At what second did you tear up?

Driving a Caravan Through Ireland

This is on my bucket list. Who wants to go to Ireland to drive a Gypsy Caravan across the country side for a week?

Saving the Faroe Pony

The Faroese pony, which averages from 11 to 12 hands, is native to its eponymous island of origin. Like the Icelandic, this breed can tolt, has abundant mane and tail and coat in winter, and is agile over rough terrain.  It was used to carry loads on farms and herd sheep.

 I remember reading in one source written around 1900 that compared the horse and pony breeds of Scotland, Ireland, Iceland, etc., that the Faroe pony was regarded as being smarter than the other breeds since, not only was it used to herd sheep, but it would trap sheep between its legs to move an individual.

In the 1880s, there were 800 such horses on the Island but the population was severely reduced due to exports to the coal mines for use as pit ponies and the changing needs of the farmers on the island.  By the 1960s, there were 5 or 6 known purebreds.  Today there 85 purebreds left because of a strong rescue effort to save the equine heritage of the island, as the above video explains. As of 2017, there are 307 registered Icelandics on the island.

You can view the subtitles to this video by clicking the closed caption button.
Source of most info is Wikipedia.

Grand National on Shetlands in Front of the Queen

Kids ride their Shetland ponies in front of the Queen of England to win the pint-sized version of the Grand National.

The Nomad Horse Games

Forget the prancing horses in the Olympics, let's watch real nomad horse games.

Pottok Ponies

If you are unfamiliar with the Pottok, this now rare pony is native to the Basque area between France and Spain. Genetically Pottok ponies have lived in these mountains for thousands of years. Semi-feral herds still roam the mountains. They are related to the Asturon and Galician breeds. Traditionally they were used to carry goods, especially by smugglers. Today they are popular as children's ponies.

The first photo features an 1872 photo of a Potok pony used in Third Carlist war, a rebellion in Spain. Notice the coat of arms from Zestoa, Spain, featuring the Pottaks in power poses. I still don't understand why the SCA won't let me feature an Icelandic horse tolting on my personal coat of arms. ;-)

Both photos are from Wikipedia. The coat of arms was supplied by Antxon Gomez.

How Does the Icelandic Horse Personality Compare to Other Breeds

Icelandic horse and Irish Sports Horse

Horse owners have long debated about variations in personality among the different horse breeds.  Arabs may be described as flighty, draft horses as stoic, and ponies as stubborn.  Others may counter that Arabs are responsive, draft horses are obedient, and ponies are smart.   Scientists have just started studying variations in personality between breeds.

In a preliminary study, Lloyd, et al (2007) developed a Horse Personality Questionnaire based on 25 personality attributes that were found to reliably rate horse personality.  These 25 attributes were further grouped into 6 underlying personality components--Dominance, Anxiousness, Excitability, Protection, Sociability and Inquisitiveness shown below:

• Dominance—Reliable, Subordinate, Equable, Eccentric, Effective, Stubborn, Aggressive, Irritable
• Anxiousness—Suspicious, Insecure, Tense, Apprehensive, Fearful
• Excitability—Active, Slow, Excitable, Intelligent
• Protection—Understanding, Motherly, Protective
• Sociability-- Sociable, Playful, Popular
• Inquisitiveness—Curious, Opportunistic

In a follow up study, Lloyd, et al (2008) contacted breed societies and used other communication methods to ask owners to rate their purebred horses on a scale from 1 to 7 across these 25 behaviorally defined objectives in the Horse Personality Questionnaire.  They received responses about 1223 horses representing the following breeds: Irish draught horses, thoroughbreds, Shetland ponies, Arabs, Highland ponies, Welsh ponies and cobs, American Quarter Horses, and Appaloosas.  The researchers deliberately included heavy, light, and pony breeds.  The horses had to be purebred, at least one year old, and handled by the owner for at least six months to be included.  Stallions, mares, and geldings were represented. 

Supporting earlier studies, Lloyd et al (2008) found statistically significant differences in personality between breeds.  The original table in the study provides average component scores for each breed.  To better enable comparison and discussion by you the readers, I have redrawn the table by showing Lloyd et al’s ranking of the breeds from high to low.  Note by doing so I may have inadvertently biased reader interpretation by camouflaging variability shown by the numeric scores. In reality, Anxiousness and Excitability exhibit great variability and Dominance and Protection,  low variability.  The reader is advised to go to the original study to see actual results.  I also rearranged the breeds to more clearly highlight breed relationships such as the Arabian horse having a great genetic input into the Welsh cob breed.  And, of course, I added my own estimate of where the Icelandic horse may fall in this ranking.   I also admit that I may be unconsciously biased since I have owned an Icelandic horse for 11 years.

Do you agree with my ranking of the Icelandic horse?  Do you think the researchers skewed the results by including intelligence with excitability?  Can a horse be intelligent and calm?

As Lloyd, et al (2008) observed, “…the temperament, and therefore the personality, of a horse is considered to be an important attribute and was considered a key issue in horse health and performance. Therefore a greater understanding of the typical behaviour and personality of specific horse breeds may aid the selection of horses for specific equine disciplines, including use for leisure by amateur riders. More informed selection of horses should lead to improved horse welfare, as horses are more likely to be selected for appropriate functions and rider capabilities” (pp. 371-372).

Sources:

Lloyd, A.S., Martin, J.E., Bornett-Gauci, H.L.I.,Wilkinson, R.G., 2007. Evaluation of a novel method of horse personality assessment: rater agreement and links to behaviour. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 105, 205–222. 

Lloyd, A., Martin, J., Bornett-Gauci, H., Wilkinson, R.  (2008).  Horse personality: Variation between breeds, Applied Animal Behaviour Science 112 (2008) 369–383

Queen of England Rides a Pony--Advantages of Small Horse

I really wish that I could show you this picture directly.  However it is copyrighted so you'll have to use the link to view it. 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1385730/Queen-Elizabeth-goes-riding-Prince-Edwards-children.html


In the picture, Queen Elizabeth, on a Fell pony, is riding with her grandchildren Lady Louise Windsor and James, Viscount Severn, in Windsor Great Park.  So if an 85-year old woman, who just happens to be the Queen of England, can ride a pony, why should any of us worry about being seen on a smaller horse?

Princess Fiona is an Irish warmblood who is very successful at
cross country, jumping, and dressage.  Compare her conformation
with Blessi.  He is a bit unsure of Fiona's intentions--his front legs
are not normally splayed.

Smaller horses definitely offer some advantages over larger horses.  The Horse Confirmation Handbook by Heather Smith Thomas discusses how to evaluate horse confirmation for soundness, potential for different activities, trainability, and willingness. The author gives some information on gaited breeds but that is not her focus.

One of the chapters in the book discusses height and how it impacts horse performance. Thomas makes some interesting statements as to why smaller horses can be a better ride. (I am summarizing some of the points so there may be some oversimplification since confirmation requires the analysis of many interrelated factors.)

• Body balance is more important than size.
• "A shorter legged horse has a lower center of gravity and better base of support, with a securer balance than an overly leggy horse."
• "Horses with short legs rarely overreach and forge, yet this is a common problem in a disproportionately long-legged horse." ie, short-legged is defined as slightly short-legged in relation to the horse's proportion.
• "When a short-legged horse gallops well, he can often compete with the best of the taller, leggier horses, due to better balance and body control on turns and uneven terrain on downhill slopes."
• The longer-legged horse will probably be faster on a long uphill grade.
• A short rider on a tall horse may have difficulty applying the aids appropriately since the rider's legs may be too short to contact the appropriate areas on the horse.
• Tall horses are harder to mount and dismount.
• A rider who is too heavy or tall for a shorter horse may hinder the horse's balance.
• "A small horse almost always has better endurance tnan a large, bulky horse."
• Depending on bone width and back length, a smaller horse may be able to carry more weight proportionate to its height.
• "When agility and staying power are considered, a well-built small horse will often do better than a well-built tall horse." ie, cutting horses are usually 15 hands or less.
• A taller horse may be better for racing and jumping, but many smaller horses excel at these sports also.
• "From foalhood, large, leggy horses tend to have higher risks for injury and problems." due to fast growth, weak spots in bones growing rapidly, etc.

I have only owned one horse, Blessi an Icelandic. Do you agree with these statements? How do Icelandics compare with the other breeds you may have ridden or owned?  And taller horses offer advantages over shorter horses but you'll have to look up that information yourself.

Marques XXXVI--What if you met the horse version of Brad Pitt before he became famous?

Several years ago, I went on riding holiday to Epona, owned by Fernando and Jane Garcia,  in Spain, which I highly recommend to riders of any level.  I booked the train and trail package, which was a ride through the Andalusian countryside in the morning and a dressage lesson in the afternoon--all on Andalusians or Andalusian crosses.  Add in the side trips to Seville to visit a tack store, watch flamenco dancers, attend a performance at the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art, ride on the beach in traditional Spanish doma vaquero tack, and more and the holiday was magical and mystica and amazing.  And I didn't even mention the amazing Spanish food--or wine!

http://www.eponaspain.com/

One of the extras of the program was watching the Garcias' daughter Vivi, who is a graduate of the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art, train horses during the day.  One of the stallions was an absolute standout, Marques XXXVI, that the Garcias helped find for Rhea Scott (the wife of the son of the director Ridley Scott).  Here is the video that I shot:

In the US, Sabine Schut-Kery, who is now co-owner, took over the training of Marques.  This stallion went on to become PRE Stallion of the year in 2012 and 2013 Prix St Georges horse of the year.  

http://andalusianworld.com/blog/tag/marques-xxxvi/

Here is more video of this eye candy.  I am so lucky to have seen this outstanding horse before he became famous.

Zebras Jumping

Who knew that Zebras would be such good jumpers under saddle?  Take a look at this video of Zack the Zebra.  "As the video owner notes, "At 6 years old, he rides western, english or bareback. Here, he is jumping 2 foot 8 inches. He jumps, trail rides and lays down on command. As his training progresses, we learn more skills and continue the ones he already knows."

Joining the Century Club--Draft

Herman and Wasim riding the test

Herman Aguayo, age 75, and his 28-year old Arabian gelding SA Wasim joined one of the most exclusive clubs in the world—The Century Club.  Established in 1996 by the U.S. Dressage Foundation, the Century Club currently has only 133 members.  To be admitted to this select organization, the combined ages of the horse and rider must total at least 100 and they have to ride any level dressage test at an event sanctioned by the USDF.   The goal of The Century Club is to celebrate those senior riders who continue to enjoy and have fun with their senior equine partners.  Herman and Wasim became the 134^th pair to join the club, only the 6^th in Washington state.

“Riding in the Century Club has always been on my bucket list,” says Herman. “The late Lt. Col. Eugene Dueber of Port Orchard, who is one of the original members of the Century Club, encouraged me to try for this honor years ago.”  Eugene Dueber didn’t start riding until he was in his 60s.  At age 85, Eugene Dueber won his place in the Century Club in 2001 by riding the 16-year old Arabian mare VP Medley.  Eugene gave Herman, a fellow Marine, his United States Marine Corps blue saddle pad to remind Herman about his goal to join the Century Club.  “My wife Kathy also kept encouraging me to get back in the saddle after my knee operations,” chuckled Herman.

Getting a big wave and smile from the judge and scribe

Herman started riding as a child.  He has had great success in riding Western and hunt seat and in driving.  The Aguayos have been breeding and showing nationally ranked Arabs and part Arabs for years from their Sawda Equestrian Center in Port Orchard.  In previous years, Sawda’s Pirouette, Shetan, and Nelita have all won the Tripoli Cup, originally donated by Eugene Dueber to the Equestrian Institute.  The award is given to the highest scoring Arab or half Arab in dressage in the state of Washington. Herman and Kathy are members and supporters of the Lower Puget Sound Dressage Club.  As Kathy explains, “The LPSDC is a great, low key venue for beginning riders to start competing in dressage before they move up to the A shows.  All breeds of horses are welcomed—not just the traditional dressage horses.”

Kathy presents the Century Club ribbon Herman
and Wasim

Herman’s partner in this venture was Wasim, Arabic for “handsome,” a gelding from Herman’s own breeding program.  Herman has special affection for Wasim since he was an orphan foal who needed to be bottle fed.  “He thinks he is more human than horse,” laughs Herman.  Wasim was owned by several 4-H riders until he came back to Sawda for his “retirement.”  Wasim wasn’t ready for retirement so he started dressage training at age 18 with Broox Trudeau.  In 5 years, Wasim won his Legion of Honor award from the Arabian Horse Association by earning 75 points in dressage and other events.  “Even though he has had Cushings disease for the past six years”, Herman adds, “Wasim continues to give the occasional lesson to beginning young riders.  He also keeps us on our toes by making us carefully lock all stalls and feed rooms since he can open any improperly latched gate.”

Herman is congratulated by
one of his former students

Despite having both knees replaced in operations in 2011 and 2012 and never having ridden dressage before, Herman was still resolved to try for the Century Club.  To prepare, he worked with Shannon Lockwood, a Grand Prix rider who teaches dressage at both Sawda and Chalice Farms in Port Orchard.  “Herman already had great equitation basics, he just needed to work on learning the dressage pattern,” says Shannon.  Herman and Wasim rode for 10 to 15 minutes a day.  Both horse and rider had fun.  As Kathy, Herman’s wife, explains, “Wasim didn’t want to just walk and trot.  Herman had to remind Wasim that there was no canter in the pattern they were learning.”

Herman and Kathy have always had a big heart.  They have rescued strays—dogs, horses, and children—giving them a home or extra attention depending on what was needed.   Herman has been a 4-H leader in the equestrian program in Kitsap County for 16 years.  “A horse is not like a bicycle,” Herman says.  “You can’t ride a horse and then put it away until it is wanted again.  Caring for a horse teaches kids responsibility, empathy for animals, and how to plan for the finances required to properly take care of that animal.”  Children working with Herman learn to set goals and then work towards meeting those goals.  Many achieve a sense of self worth for the first time.   Herman’s former students now include three equine vets, an Air Force pilot, nurses, lawyers, a human resource manager, a foreign diplomat, two vet techs, and several farriers to mention only a few of the success stories.

Wasim takes a bow

On Sunday, July 7, 2013, several of those former students witnessed Herman and Wasim ride their Century Club test during the Lower Puget Sound Dressage Club hosted by the Aguayos at Sawda.  Herman and Wasim, decked out in the blue saddle pad with red and yellow border gifted to Herman by Lt. Col. Eugene Dueber, scored an impressive 64.688.  This score was high enough to win a blue ribbon in most of the classes that day.  {{{Need quote from former student. }}}  To celebrate, attendees enjoyed chocolate cake and sparkling cider while Wasim snacked on his “carrot” cake.  

Taking what he has learned from preparing for the Century Club, Herman looks forward to continuing to work with the next generation of young riders.  Hopefully, Wasim will eagerly greet young and old visitors to Sawda for many years to come.  Together, Herman and Wasim certainly exemplify the Century Club motto “to do good, we must do well.”

Dolphins swimming with horse

And here is some amazing footage of dolphins swimming with a rider and horse in Red Hook in St. Thomas.  Or is that the horse swimming with the dolphins?

Yakut Horse

Source: Wikipedia

What an interesting horse! Some quick internet research shows that these horses have a close link to Mongolian horses, which recent mtDNA research shows are related to Icelandic horses. However, the Yakut horse has been outbred to a number of other breeds.

Here is a link to an article that a member of the Long Riders Guild wrote about his stay with the Yakuts and their horses.

http://www.thelongridersguild.com/yakuts.htm

As Vassili, a 75-year old Yakut horse owner and trainer comments:

"You know, if we end up with an aggressive and violent horse or foal, it can take up to a year before we can ride it", Vassili continues to explain, "we never beat or use violence when training a horse. It has to take its time. This is a graceful and sensitive animal. And, I have to point out this, if a person
has to beat a horse to make it do what one wants, this person is no horseman. He's a brute."

The Yakuts don't, as an example of their horsemanship, use a whip, riding stick or anything more brutal than this to command their horse.

"I am of the opinion", Vassili states, "that if you're together with a horse every day for many years and after all this time still needs to beat the horse, you don't understand horses. A real cowboy knows how to get his horse to do what he wants it to do, without using force."

The Great Escape

Who says that horses cannot think?  This Friesian mare Mariska has used trial and error to work out how to open a variety of latches and gaits--even open a chest style freezer.   The video shows how she can lead a "Great Escape."

Icelandics Race the Clydesdales

Each year riders take Clydesdale Horses from Skye to Cumbria, Britain, approximately 420 miles.  Here you see the Icelandics racing before them at the Ford West at Linton.  I love the contrast in the way the two breeds move---but boy are those Iceys quick.

Icelandic Horse mtDNA Research



Shetland Ponies, Wikipedia

Now let’s examine how recent mtDNA research supports or contradicts what historical and saga references have suggested are the origins of the Icelandic horse.  Jansen, Forster et al, (2002) extracted DNA from 318 unrelated horses representing 25 breeds from the US, Austria, Germany, Britain, Germany, Morocco, Spain, and Portugal.  Each horse had to have documented ancestry for at last five generations.  Additional mtDNA data was used from the GenBank or other publications creating a total horse population of 652.  Using this data, the researchers were able to create 17 very frequent mtDNA types indicating relationships among breeds.  As Jansen, and Forster, et al specify, “The clearest association between cluster and breed is evidenced by cluster C1 (n = 48): in our sample, it is geographically restricted to central Europe, the British Isles, and Scandinavia, including Iceland. A total of 17 of 19 documented horses with C1 are northern European ponies (Exmoor, Fjord, Icelandic, and Scottish Highland). Additionally, 14 of 27 undocumented horses with C1 are ponies, including Connemara ponies. The cluster is younger than perhaps 8,000 y, but definitely older than 1,500 y, because C1 was also found in two ancient Viking horses. Furthermore, mtDNA cluster E (n = 16) consists entirely of Icelandic, Shetland, and Fjord ponies. Taken together, this suggests a common late glacial or postglacial origin for these pony breeds.”

Mongolian Horse, Wikipedia

McCue, Bannasch, et al, (2012) conducted additional mtDNA research on samples from fourteen domestic horse breeds.  Results indicate that “The Norwegian Fjord, Icelandic, Mongolian, and Belgian clustered together in 3 dimensions, and Icelandic and Norwegian Fjord horses clustered tightly together in all 6 dimensions. This may reflect the suggested influence of Mongolian genes in the development of the Norwegian Fjord and subsequent development of the Icelandic horse from Scandinavian stock imported to Iceland.”    Note that the researchers caution against regarding the Belgian, a draft breed, as being closely related to the Norwegian Fjord, Icelandic, and Mongolian horses since its history shows that it could have little relationship to the other breeds.



Nordland Horse, Wikipedia

Additional research suggests that the Nordland, a rare Norwegian breed, is also very closely related to the Icelandic.  These horses exhibit very similar conformation and colors to the Icelandic horse and are also gaited  (Bjőrnsson and Sveinsson (2006)).  Representatives of the Nordland have not been included in recent mtDNA studies.

Without the benefit of some of the more recent mtDNA research, Bjőrnsson and Sveinsson (2006) argue against including the Norwegian Fjord as a direct ancestor of the Icelandic horse since the conformation and singular coloring of the breed (only dun coloring is acceptable) is so different from the conformation and multiple colors of the Icelandic breed.  Nor is the Norwegian Fjord gaited.  Certainly in the far past, the Norwegian Fjord could have had more colors especially since all extant Fjords are the offspring of one Fjord stallion born in 1891.  One could certainly reason that both breeds had a common ancestor that would explain the close relationship indicated by recent mtDNA studies.  

Fjord Mare and Foal, Wikipedia

 

As researchers refine their analytical techniques and increase the number of individual Icelandic horses included in their research, additional surprises about the breed’s genetic background may be revealed.   As Lippold, Matzke, et al (2011) caution, “…mitochondrial DNA alone is unlikely to resolve the geographical origin of horse domestication. Given the relatively recent origin of modern horse breeds and the extensive trade of horses as well as their use as a means of long distance transport, this result is, however, not entirely surprising. Resolving the timing and geographical origin of horse domestication will therefore require the use of alternative genetic markers.”

 

Sources:

Bjőrnsson, G., & Sveinsson, H.  (2006).  The Icelandic Horse, Edda Publishing, Reykjavik, Iceland.

Jansen, T., Forster, P. Levine, M., Oelke, H., Hurles, M., Renfrew, C., Weber, J., & Olek, K.  (2002) Mitochondrial DNA and the origins of the domestic horse.  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States.  Found September 10, 2012 at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC125071/

Lippold, S., Matzke, N., Reissmann, M.,  & Hofreiter, M.  (2011).  Whole mitochondrial genome sequencing of domestic horses reveals incorporation of extensive wild horse diversity during domestication, BMC Evolutionary Biology 2011, 11:328, http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2148/11/328

 

McCue, M., Bannasch, D., Petersen, J., Gurr, J., Bailey, E, Binns, M., Distl, O., Guérin, G., Hasegawa, T, Hill, E., Lee, T., Lindgren, G., M. Penedo, M., Røed, K. Ryder, O, Swinburne, J., Tozaki, T, Valberg, S., Vaudin, M., Lindblad-Toh, K., Wade, C., & Mickelson, J.  (2012) A High Density SNP Array for the Domestic Horse and Extant Perissodactyla: Utility for Association Mapping, Genetic Diversity, and Phylogeny Studies, PLOS Genetics, Found on September 20, 1012 at http://www.plosgenetics.org/article/info:doi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pgen.1002451

Origins of the Icelandic Horse--History

From Hathi Trust Digital Library

In 1905, Annandale published Iceland and the Faroes: Studies in Iceland Life.  Almost 50 years before Watson and Crick discovered DNA, Annandale used the Landnámabók to try to deduce the origin of the Icelandic horse. Per the Landnámabók, the earliest permanent settlers in Iceland came from two major groups.  In the late 880s, the majority of the first settlers were Norsemen, originally from Norway, who had occupied pockets of modern Britain including the Shetlands and Faroe islands.  They brought in “Westman” slaves from those Islands and settled mainly in the south of the Island.  About 20 years later, a second batch of settlers, mostly nobles and their households, arrived either directly from Norway or after short stays in the northern Scottish islands, and settled in the north of Iceland.  Annandale speculated that first group brought mostly Shetland-like pony type stock from northern Britain islands; and the second, Norwegian horse/pony stock and probably some pony stock from the northern British islands.

Annandale also mentions that after the conversion of Iceland to Christianity in the early 1000s, Icelanders made pilgrimages to Jerusalem and that ambitious young Norse men took service in the Varangian Guard, the personal bodyguards of the Byzantine emperor from the ninth to the fourteenth century.  As he concludes, “In short, it is probable that the original breed of horses in Iceland and the Faroes was of mixed origin, in which the Hebridean and the Scandinavian predominated, though blood from South Europe or even from the African and Asiatic coasts of the Mediterranean may [emphasis added by the author of this article] have contributed to its formation” (p, 175).  Annandale also highlights the resemblance between native Norwegian stock and the Mongolian pony. 

But was Annadale correct in what he postulated?  Check tomorrow's post for the results of recent mtDNA studies.

Source:

Annandale, N., & Marshall, F.  (1905) Iceland and the Faroes:Studies in Iceland Life, Oxford, Clarendon Press.   Available via Hathitrust Library.  Found September 19, 2012, at http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015067063340;page=root;view=image;size=100;seq=7;num=i