SOME FOREIGN BREEDS 149 



tanghans of Tibet, both of which appear to be de- 

 rivatives from the tarpan stock crossed with Arab 

 blood. 



Reference may, however, be made in this place 

 to the horses of Northern Spain, which are quite 

 distinct from those of the south. Many of them are 

 grey and roan-grey, but in the sierras occurs a dun- 

 coloured breed, in which the legs are frequently 

 striped. That these are typical representatives of 

 the old European dun stock may, as Professor 

 Ridgeway ^ remarks, be doubtful, as their striping 

 may be the result of cross-breeding ; but even if 

 this be so, their colouring is probably due to rever- 

 sion to the original type. This is indeed practi- 

 cally admitted by Professor Ridgeway, who on 

 the page just cited remarks that " the horses of 

 the Asturias and other mountainous areas of Spain 

 are probably descended from the European large- 

 headed horse, which may have continued in a wild 

 state in Spain down to the Christian era, since 

 Posidonius mentions horses among the wild animals 

 of Spain. Of course these horses may have been 

 simply feral horses, but on the other hand there is 

 no reason why genuine wild EquidcE should not have 

 still survived in wild and mountainous districts." 



^ The Thoroughbred Horse, p. 260. 



