📅 This Year of the Horse, on January 19, 2026, scholars at Tsinghua University dropped a game-changer: Volume 15 of "The Bamboo Slips of the Warring States Period" features five brand-new texts all about horse management—the earliest systematic guides on equine appraisal, veterinary care, training, and more! 🐎
These bamboo slips, discovered back in 2008 on the Chinese mainland and stored at Tsinghua, form the largest collection of Warring States writings. Since 2010, researchers have pieced together stories of ancient horse experts, and now we get a backstage pass to how horses were judged, healed, and trained over 2,500 years ago.
Why it matters:
- Equine appraisal: Ancient techniques to spot a champion horse. ✨
- Veterinary treatment: Early cures and care for injured or sick horses. 🩺
- Training tips: Drills and guidance to turn horses into elite battle mounts. ⚔️
- Historical insights: A window into Warring States animal husbandry and zooarchaeology. 🔍
For students, entrepreneurs, and history buffs alike, these texts reveal how sophisticated early veterinary science and animal management really were. It’s a reminder that innovation gallops through time—and sometimes the past has the best cheat sheets! 📖🐴
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
