THE MULTIPLE ORIGIN OF HORSES AND PONIES, 453 



itself ill the tail; there are strijjes on the neck and faint stripes ex- 

 tend a short distance from the dorsal band across the body, as in the 

 British Mnseum quagga, while the legs, especially in the region of the 

 '' knees " and hocks, are marked by distinct bars. 



The ears ai-e short and are carried in a nearly upright position; 

 the forehead (which is not particularly wide), in having two ridges 

 extending upward from the prominent eyes to meet under the fore- 

 lock, differs greatly from the '•" bumpy " forehead of Prjevalsky's 

 horse and the flat forehead of the Celtic pony. The space between 

 the ()rl)it and the nostril is relatively longer than in the Celtic pony, 

 but shorter than in Prjevalsky's horse. The eyes project beyond the 

 level of the forehead. In the Celtic pony the eyes are large and 

 adapted f(^r a wide range; in the wild horse th(\v are some distance 

 from the front of the head; in the Norse horse they are small and 

 look downward rather than forward. The outline of the face be- 

 comes convex above the muzzle and ends in a somewhat long upper 

 lip, adapted, like the upper lip in the giraffe, for feeding on leaves 

 and twigs. In the neck and shoulders, trunlc and limbs, the Norse 

 variety may be said to resemble a small cart hoi'se of the Suffolk type. 



Compared with the wnld horse, the withers are lower and the hind 

 quarters more rounded, and the tail springs more abruptly and at a 

 lower level, and hence fails to convey the im[)ression that it is a 

 direct continuation of the trunk. The dock is relatively longer than 

 in the Celtic pony, but shorter than in the wild horse. The liml)s are 

 short, but the joints are large and the hoofs fairly broad; hence in a 

 side view of the foreleg a considerable increase is noticed as the 

 thick fetlock joint is reached. 



It will be evident from Avhat has been said that the Norse horse 

 differs chiefly from the wild Gobi horse in being of a darker dun 

 color, in being far more richly striped, in the shape of the head, size 

 of the ears, position of the eyes, and also in the muzzle, mane, tail, 

 hind quarters, joints, and hoofs. From the Celtic pony the Norse 

 horse also differs in the color and markings; but it especially differs 

 in the tail and in the greater proportional length of the distance be- 

 tween the eye and the nostril, and in having a complete set of ergots 

 and chestnuts. It is inconceivable that the Norse variety could revert 

 to the Prjevalsky horse type, or be regarded as an offshoot from the 

 Celtic pony. 



The question may now^ be asked, Is there any evidence that the 

 Palff'oliths of the south of Europe were familiar with horses of the 

 Norse type? Figure 2, plate ir, gives an imperfect idea of a specimen 

 of the Norse race from the west of Ross-shire. If this figure of a 

 horse still living is compared with figure 2, which faithfully repro- 

 duces an engraving made thousands of years ago in the Combarelles 



