From H. Hayes "Veterinary notes for horse owners"
1877; 15th edition 1968, London, Stanley Paul. See
section on "Examining the mouth for age" (J.D.F.
Tutt p. 512.)
These are probably 19th century examples. It is
given that:
A hard working horse quite old at 17 - powers 'on
the wane.' Author notes horses of 35, 50 and even
63 years of age - a canal horse at Warrington - Also
notes hunter of 52 years, farm horse of 43 in Lake
District, and says that the 19th century writer-vet
Youatt records horses of 35, 37 and 39. You may
have read Youatt's early 19th century veterinary
books; his ageing systems are quite wrong!!! There
is also a list of 15 famous racehorses with their
death ages at between 19 and 36 years. From Blaine's
rules of the early 19th century a horse of 20 is as
a man of 60, a horse of 30 is a man of 80, and 35 as
a man of 90. I know the feeling.
So yes, its rare. The mandible survives of the
horses that were buried in the Iron Age "King's
Barrow" at Arras in Yorkshire (dug 1812, if memory
serves) The mandible is from a very old horse,
certainly the oldest as an archeological specimen
that I have seen, with teeth worn to stumps - well
off the end of Levine's curves. My estimate was for
>25 years - probably conservative! I gave the few
measurements possible in "Iron Age Burials at Mill
Hill, Deal" (Keith Parfitt.) British Museum Press
1995, pp 146-152.
Why am I writing all of this? Firstly, it interests
me. Secondly, the alternative is the minutes of the
'Quality Assurance' meeting this afternoon.
Tony Legge
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