The Year of the Horse
An interview with Jiefang Daily, Shanghai
As the Chinese lunar Year of the Horse arrives, the qualities of vitality, strength, and agility that the horse symbolizes have long been deeply integrated into the spiritual core of Eastern civilization, becoming a cultural icon that transcends eras and regions. In the view of American scholar David Chaffetz, the significance of the horse extends far beyond this – it is an invisible link connecting the millennia-old civilizations across the Eurasian continent, a key force in shaping power structures, economic landscapes, and cultural forms. His book, The Horse and the Making of Civilization, reconstructs historical narratives from a unique "equine perspective," breaking down the traditional boundaries of civilization studies.
In this exclusive interview, David Chaffetz uses the cultural context of the Year of the Horse as a starting point to explore the deep-seated logic of the interaction between horses and civilization, as well as the valuable insights this rich history offers for the contemporary world.
Millennia of Horses: Why They Are the Key
Books Weekly: This year is the Chinese Lunar Year of the Horse. In Chinese, phrases like "Longma Jingshen" (vigor and spirit like a dragon and horse), "Macheng Chenggong" (immediate success upon arrival), and "Yima Dangxian" (to take the lead) all demonstrate people's fondness and admiration for the horse. In your book, you define the horse's three roles as "raider, ruler, and trader." Is there an inherent resonance between this characterization and the cultural symbolism of the Year of the Horse in China?
David Chaffetz: I think it aligns perfectly. The twelve zodiac animals are an extremely ancient component of Chinese culture, with each animal representing both a virtue and a flaw, encompassing both opportunity and potential danger. The traditional characteristics associated with the Year of the Horse clearly reflect the roles horses have played throughout history. Horses can be aggressive and temperamental, potentially causing conflict – corresponding to the "raider." They are strong and majestic – corresponding to the "ruler." They are swift, facilitating travel, exploration, and trade – which is what I term the "trader."
I've also noticed that the twelve-animal zodiac is widely used across Eurasia. When I traveled in Afghanistan, local people would use their zodiac sign to indicate their age. I just learned that Tajikistan is also celebrating the Year of the Horse. So, it's evident that the horse not only holds an important place across Eurasia, but its symbolic meaning is also widely recorded.
Books Weekly: Was it these two cross-cultural elements that sparked the idea of "horses connecting Eurasian civilizations"? Were there other experiences or academic inspirations that ultimately led you to use the horse as the central thread for narrating the history of human civilization?
David Chaffetz: The British historian Edward Gibbon famously said the idea for The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire came to him while amidst the ruins of Rome. I didn't have such a precise, dramatic moment. My research perspective developed gradually over years of fragmented experiences and academic reflection.
As a student, I read the works of William H. McNeill, a world history professor at the University of Chicago, which were incredibly inspiring. McNeill was among the first to show American readers the deep connections between China, India, and the West, interpreting history as a process of interaction. He used the metaphor of a "gear box" – where the motion of each major region would accelerate or be propelled by its neighbors. Although abstract, this metaphor made me ponder: what could be the tangible载体 that connected different civilizations, representing these "gears"?
This question lingered in my mind. In 1976, I traveled to Afghanistan and bought a horse, planning to ride from Herat in the west to Kabul in the east. The broker selling the horse looked at the one I'd chosen and said, seriously, "This is a good horse. It can take you to Kabul, it could even take you all the way to China." I was astonished that an Afghan horse trader would mention China. Later, visiting the Kremlin Armoury in Moscow, I saw the vast array of gifts and spoils received by Russian rulers from their steppe neighbors, mostly horse tack – jewel-encrusted bridles, exquisitely crafted saddles, ornate sabers and stirrups. These exhibits made me realize that before Peter the Great, the Muscovite grand princes and early tsars lived very much like the Turks and Mongols, and the saddlers in the Kashgar bazaar, with their skills, could certainly have made similar gear (just lacking the precious jewels).
About five years ago, I read a Persian historical source recording an embassy from Herat to the Ming dynasty during the Yongle era, specifically presenting the emperor with several precious horses. This reminded me of the horse trader's words in Herat all those years ago – so Afghan horses really had reached China! At that moment, my previous experiences and questions suddenly connected. I finally confirmed that the "interlocking gears" William McNeill described, which had facilitated dialogue and exchange among Eurasian nations for millennia, were the horses themselves.
Books Weekly: Regarding the relationship between horses and civilization, what discoveries surprised you the most during your research?
David Chaffetz: There were many such discoveries, though some surprises were always right in front of us. For example, chariot warfare actually appeared long before cavalry. In China's Shang dynasty, Homeric Greece, and Vedic India, warriors fought from chariots. I used to think that since chariots are technically more complex than simply riding a horse, cavalry should have appeared soon after domestication. But in fact, chariot warfare predates cavalry by over a thousand years. It turns out that ancient horses weren't large or strong enough to carry an armored rider. Furthermore, harness technology hadn't developed sufficiently to support cavalry combat: wielding a sword or lance in a melee requires specialized reins, bits, and saddles. In fact, the earliest form of mounted combat was archery, but this originated from archers riding in chariots.
Another surprising little discovery – steppe peoples possessed sophisticated skills, especially in metallurgy. The spoke-wheeled chariot was their invention. Who would have thought that such an ingenious means of transport originated in what we might perceive as barren, underdeveloped lands? In reality, steppe peoples diligently perfected their way of life, and mobility was crucial to them, so they invented the chariot.
One final related surprise: all subsequent chariots were based on a model developed on the Eurasian steppes in the 2nd millennium BC, which spread rapidly, east to China and west to Ireland. This is an excellent example of early globalization and rapid technological diffusion, much like electric vehicles today.
Books Weekly: In the preface to the Chinese edition, you thanked the Chinese people for their help. How did Chinese historical research resources influence your understanding of the relationship between horses and civilization?
David Chaffetz: The Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji) and the Book of Han (Hanshu) are core texts for studying early Chinese history, and both contain extensive references to horses, both direct and indirect. For instance, we learn from them that the state of Qin had powerful cavalry, which helped them unify China – that's a direct reference. But equally interesting is that the First Emperor of Qin's ancestors were hereditary horse keepers for the Zhou dynasty. This shows that while cavalry was important in warfare, retainers involved in horse breeding and training could also rise to the highest ranks – an indirect indication of the horse's importance. We also learn from these texts that horses held both symbolic and practical value in the Han dynasty. In the early Han, horses were so scarce that the emperor couldn't even find four horses of the same coat color for his chariot. This practical shortage led to their ceremonial or symbolic use being (temporarily) set aside. Based on this record, I think we can infer why the Han dynasty stopped the custom, practiced in the Qin and earlier dynasties, of burying real horses with the dead. It was precisely due to the scarcity of horses, or their increasing practical value, that people began using pottery horses as substitutes. This, too, reflects the importance of horses in ancient China – they were too valuable to be casually destroyed for ancient rituals. Therefore, carefully studying these core texts allows us deep insight into the role horses played in ancient China.
Riding the Wind: Reshaping Civilization
Books Weekly: You propose the concept of the "Horse Road" as a counterpoint to the "Silk Road." What roles did the horse trade and the silk trade play respectively in ancient Eurasian exchanges?
David Chaffetz: The traditional view is that the Han dynasty opened up the Western Regions to export silk, but I believe the core need was to acquire horses, to break free from dependence on the Xiongnu. The Han dynasty was locked in prolonged conflict with the Xiongnu, whose cavalry, with their superior horses and masterful archery skills, were highly mobile and posed a tremendous challenge to the Han armies. However, China's domestic climate and geography made it difficult to breed horses strong and enduring enough for military use, while the Xiongnu, with their steppe advantages, monopolized the supply of such high-quality horses. Buying horses from the Xiongnu would have been tantamount to strengthening a military adversary, something Han rulers were loath to do. Therefore, Emperor Wu of Han made the decisive move to purchase from further west, beyond the Xiongnu. These were partly warhorses, including the famed "blood-sweating horses" (also called Tianma or Dayuan ma) from Ferghana. This history is remembered through the famous event of "Li Guangli's campaign against Dayuan," and it was this expedition that truly opened the "Horse Road."
With the opening of channels to purchase horses, large-scale trade emerged. The Han dynasty needed to buy tens of thousands of horses annually. Such a massive procurement volume meant they had to export goods of equivalent value in exchange. At the time, the product China could produce in large quantities and which was popular in Western markets was silk – but not the finely woven luxury item for nobles, but relatively coarse raw silk. According to historical records, in the Tang dynasty, 40 bolts of raw silk could be exchanged for one good warhorse. At this point, raw silk functioned more like a form of "paper currency" than a simple consumer good. This also explains why large caches of raw silk are found at Silk Road archaeological sites – people hoarded this commodity much like we might bury coins today.
The silk trade served the demand for horses, and together they propelled Eurasian economic exchange: Chinese silk, tea, porcelain, and important plant species spread continuously westward; while Western religions like Zoroastrianism and Nestorian Christianity, along with cultural elements like music, dance, and art, entered China with merchants and envoys. Dunhuang's White Horse Pagoda commemorates the white horse of the great Buddhist scholar Kumarajiva – his mount died near Dunhuang during his journey eastward to spread the Dharma; and the white horse of the Tang dynasty monk Xuanzang on his journey west to seek scriptures (transformed into the White Dragon Horse in Journey to the West) also reflects this cultural exchange in literary form.
Books Weekly: What dual role did horses play in the interactions between Eurasian steppe peoples and the various Chinese dynasties?
David Chaffetz: Horses were unique in many respects. As a commodity, they could transport themselves. When horse merchants traveled from distant Ferghana or Samarkand to China, they would drive their herds along the route. In a way, it didn't matter if the journey took a year or even two – if the horses arrived in good condition, they considered it a good venture. At the same time, these trading caravans could easily transform into bands of profitable raiders, as they were always armed and possessed the advantage of surprise and mobility. Ancient Chinese governments consistently insisted that steppe horse-breeding peoples conduct trade at specific border markets (so-called "horse markets"), a policy designed to prevent outsiders from threatening public peace. Sometimes, horse-breeding peoples would be motivated to launch attacks on the Central Plains. This could happen, for instance, if the price offered for their horses was too low, or if an oversupply of horses (often following a good pasture year) caused prices to drop. Conversely, during wartime, China's demand for horses would increase, driving prices up. So, despite the convenience of trade, steppe horse-breeders did have incentives to venture into the Central Plains.
The manner in which trade was conducted added further complexity. Some trade involved ceremonial gift exchanges – steppe peoples offering horses, the Central Plains reciprocating with silks or precious objects. Misunderstandings over ritual or inadequate return gifts could lead to a breakdown in trade. In these delicate cultural exchanges, both sides could quickly perceive signals of hostility. There were also economic dimensions. The larger and more powerful a steppe confederation, the more they could inflate horse prices for the Central Plains, as they could monopolize supply. Central Plains regimes generally preferred to trade with smaller, competing steppe factions.