New archaeological discoveries in Mongolia show that, despite a fragmentary archaeological record, horse cultures in the eastern Eurasian steppes early adopted framed saddles and stirrups, at least by the turn of the 5th century AD. It shows. His 1,600-year-old saddle, discovered at Urd Ulan Unito, is one of the earliest known examples of a wooden-framed saddle, indicating that it was locally produced and a link to earlier saddle traditions. Both show evidence of a connection. The recent discovery of Khufu Nur suggests that stirrups were also used in the Mongolian steppes at the same time as they first appeared elsewhere in East Asia.
Birch composite frame saddle (top left) from Urud-Ulan-Unit, Mongolia and artist’s restoration. Image credit: P. Lopez Calle.
Horseback riding appears to have been little attempted as a regular mode of transportation until the late 2nd millennium BC or early 1st millennium BC, although some archaeological data suggests that horses were used in Eastern Europe by the early 2nd millennium BC. This suggests that it could have been ridden. Grassland.
Early iconography, written sources, and archaeological finds indicate that in regions of western Eurasia, these first horsemen used simple blankets or soft pads with their legs suspended and separating rider and horse. Basically, I often rode naked.
The Greek writer and soldier Xenophon, writing in the 4th century BC, outlined best practices for cavalry riding, including riding naked, holding the horse only by the upper thighs, letting the lower legs dangle, and holding the mane. I explained the Greek tradition. More security.
Despite their near-ubiquitous use among modern horsemen, neither stirrups nor true saddles appear to have been used by early equestrians.
The earliest direct evidence of mounted horses in the equid family is from mounted cavalrymen in Mesopotamia and the Levant who interbred with donkeys in the third millennium BC.
By the middle of the first millennium BC, at the same time as cavalry was emerging across Eurasia, soft-padded saddles made of leather and stuffed with fur, textiles, and other materials and secured to the horse with a girth strap were being adopted in the Eurasian interior. I did.
These early saddles were sometimes reinforced with wooden or horn supports, and sometimes secured to the horse’s chest or hindquarters with chest straps or clappers.
Throughout Eurasia, by the beginning of the first century AD, simple saddles were adopted for greater safety.
In western Eurasia, Roman military saddles incorporated four large “horns” and grips to increase stability for mounted soldiers. It may also contain hard internal components, but this is debated.
Early semi-structured saddles probably provided greater comfort and safety for rider and horse, and allowed mounted and armored soldiers to handle blunt weapons and swords more directly.
These innovations in saddle stability allowed riders to withstand collisions and ride more heavily armed, allowing heavy cavalry to replace chariots on the battlefield throughout Eurasia by the end of the first millennium BC. It was helpful.
In East Asia, parallel developments were underway towards structured saddles.
Excavations of the tombs of the Xiongnu (c. 200 BC – c. 100 AD), the first steppe empire of Mongolia, have shown that padded saddles are usually supplied with a croupier and/or chest strap to secure the saddle in place. revealed that it had a hard pommel/cantle. Components were also commonly used.
By the 6th century, in East and Central Asia, primitive saddles had been replaced by sophisticated composite frame saddles combined with two metal ribs.
“Ultimately, the technologies that emerged from Mongolia had a domino effect that shaped today’s American horse culture, particularly the tradition of harnesses and stirrups,” said William Taylor, an archaeologist at the University of Colorado Boulder. said.
“But these insights come at a time when Mongolia’s horse culture is beginning to disappear,” added Dr. Jamsranjab Bayarsaikhan, an archaeologist at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
“Horses not only influenced the history of the region, but also left a deep mark on the art and worldview of the nomadic Mongolians.”
“However, the age of technology is slowly erasing the culture and use of horses. In the plains of Mongolia, horse-riding pastoralists are increasingly being replaced by motorcyclists.”
In April 2015, Dr. Bayarsaikhan and his colleagues at the National Museum of Mongolia received a report from the police that the Urd Ulan Unit cave burial site in Myangad Sum, Khovd province, had been destroyed by looters.
Police seized some organic material that was well preserved in the cave’s dry environment.
An intact wooden saddle was also recovered from Urd Ulan Unito Cave.
The saddle was made of about six birch pieces held together with wooden nails.
The black trim has red paint marks and contains two leather straps that may have once supported the stirrups.
Archaeologists have not been able to definitively trace where those materials came from. However, birch trees commonly grow in the Altai Mountains of Mongolia, suggesting that local people were not trading saddles, but were making them themselves.
“Since the early days of horseback riding, humans have used pads, the precursor to saddles, to keep horses comfortable after riding,” Dr. Taylor said.
“The combination of a sturdier wooden saddle and stirrup opens up new ranges of what people can do with their horses.”
“One of the things they created was heavy cavalry and fierce fighting on horseback. Think of the jousting of medieval Europe.”
“In the centuries after the Mongol saddle was made, this type of tool quickly spread throughout western Asia and into the early Islamic world.”
“There cavalry was the key to conquering and trading with the Mediterranean region and much of North Africa.”
“But where it all started is less clear. Archaeologists usually think that the birthplace of the first frame saddles and stirrups is modern-day China, and some finds date back to the 5th century AD. It dates back to the 6th century or earlier.
“But our research complicates that picture. It is possible that Mongolia may have been the first to adopt these new technologies, or may actually be the place where the innovations first took place.” This is not the only information that suggests this.”
“Mongolia’s place in its history may have been underestimated for a long time because of the region’s geography.”
“The country’s mountainous regions have some of the lowest population densities on earth, making it difficult to encounter and analyze important archaeological finds.”
“Mongolia is one of the few countries that has preserved horse culture from ancient times to modern times,” said Dr. Bayarsaikhan.
“However, scientific understanding of the origins of this culture is still incomplete.”
team’s findings Published in this month’s magazine ancient.
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Jamsranjaf Bayarsaikhan other. Origins of saddles and horse riding techniques in East Asia: Discoveries from Altai, Mongolia. ancient, published online on December 12, 2023. doi: 10.15184/aqy.2023.172
