Description
Fossilised Horse Leg Bone equus ferrus caballus 22cm long
This Fossilised Horse equus ferrus caballus leg bone dates from the Pleistocene period. The leg bone measures 22cm long and is in excellent condition. It is approximately 40,000 years old, and has come from Doggerland, between Eastern England and Holland. These fossils are occasionally trawled up by fishermen in the North Sea. They find these fossils in the nets amongst their catch of fish.
Doggerland was once a fertile area of land and joined England to mainland Europe. This area was submerged by the North Sea, approximately 6500 years ago by rising sea levels. Before it was flooded this was a fertile area stretching from the East Coast of England to Jutland. This was certainly an area known to have been inhabited by man because of the various tools that have been recovered there. The actual name Doggerland derives from the name of the Dutch fishing boats known as ‘doggers’. The animal remains recovered by fishermen have included lions and mammoths and also horses.
The Horse over the course of 50 million years has evolved from small dog sized animals to the large animals of today.
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