The study, published Sept. 20 in the journal Science Advances, suggests that horseback riding may slightly alter the shape of the hip joint, but such changes are not definitive proof of equestrian activity because other factors, such as prolonged sitting, can also cause similar skeletal “adaptations.”
Lead author Lauren Hosek and co-author William Taylor used skeletal changes as evidence to examine a long-standing hypothesis that ancient people living near the Black Sea began riding horses around 4,000 years ago. But the new findings suggest that human remains alone cannot accurately date the beginning of horseback riding. Skeletal variations have emerged from a variety of activities, including those unrelated to horseback riding, making the archaeological data difficult to interpret, Hosek said.
Ultimately, the study highlights the need for an “interdisciplinary approach” to better understand the chronology of human-horse interactions.
Source: Ferra
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