A01=David Chaffetz
arabian horses
asian history
Author_David Chaffetz
Category=NH
Category=NHC
Category=NHF
Category=NHTB
Category=WNGH
china
conquest
empire
eq_bestseller
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eurasia
genghis khan
history of civilization
horse history
india
middle eastern history
military history
mongol empire
prehistory
russia
steppe
Product details
- ISBN 9781324110330
- Weight: 345g
- Dimensions: 137 x 211mm
- Publication Date: 15 Jul 2025
- Publisher: WW Norton & Co
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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No animal is so entangled in human history as the horse. The thread starts in prehistory, with a slight, shy animal hunted for food. Domesticating the horse allowed early humans to settle the vast Eurasian steppe; later, their horses enabled new forms of warfare, encouraged long-distance trade routes and acquired cultural and religious significance. Over time, horses came to power empires in Iran, Afghanistan, China, India and Russia.
David Chaffetz tells the story of how the horse made rulers, raiders and traders interchangeable, providing a novel explanation for the turbulent history of the “Silk Road”, which might be better called the Horse Road. Drawing on recent research in fields including genetics and forensic archaeology, Chaffetz presents a lively history of the great horse empires that shaped civilisation.
David Chaffetz, Asian Review of Books contributor, member of the Royal Society for Asian Affairs, and author of A Journey through Afghanistan and Three Asian Divas, has traveled in Asia for over forty years. He lives in Lisbon and Paris.
