There’s no shortage of beautiful species populating the planet. In fact, human beings are among them. But there are some majestic creatures in the animal kingdom that will simply take your breath away with their magnificence. Take horses for example. Now we all know horses are overwhelmingly beautiful. But in Turkmenistan, there’s a rare breed of horse called “Akhal-Teke”, who have a coat that you have got to see to believe. These stallions are believe to be at least three thousand years old, which means they’ve been bewitching humanity with their golden coats for centuries.Their blonde coats are so shiny and beautiful that it almost looks metallic in the sunlight.
They look like something that came out of some ancient Greek Myth. Unfortunately, they are so rare that there are only 1,250 in existence.
Their coats get their blinding luster from the structural properties of their hair strands and it’s a trait that’s extremely unique among the breed.
According to their research, the protein on the hairs of these horses are arranged in a way that causes light to refract from their coats, giving off the beautiful metallic gold appearance.
So in an effort to conserve these lovely stallions, they’ve been listened as threatened on the (CPL) Conservancy’s Conservation Priority List.
The Akhal-Teke are also featured in Turkmenistan’s coat of arms, stamps, and even banknotes.
They were originally called Nisaean and then later Parthian, among other things. They were even spoken of by a well known Roman historian named Oppian.
For thousands of years they were bred for speed, size, strength, and beauty. Now, even today, the Akhal-Teke continue to be used as race horses in Turkmenistan. They may very well be the closest thing we’ll come to seeing a mythical unicorn.
