Shetland pony link to Roman chariot races

A horse bone unearthed at Britain’s only Roman circus suggests that chariots may have been pulled by Shetland ponies.

The find was made in Colchester, Essex, where the Colchester Archaeological Trust (CAT) has been excavating since 2004. Experts have been examining the hoof which appears to be that of a large Shetland pony that they believe was used for chariot racing. Philip Crummy, the CAT director, said: “There has been a long-running debate about the size of the horses used to race the chariots and this discovery suggests they would have been quite small.”