New progress of research on fossil Equus

Stenonid horse is the earliest Equus in Eurasia. The first occurrence of stenonid horse in Eurasia was regarded as the sign of the lower boundary of the Quaternary. The appearance, evolution and dispersal of the stenonid horses were contemporary with many important geological and environmental events, so they were regarded as important material for study on climatic and environmental changes in Quaternary, which fascinate paleontological researchers all over the world. China is a country where the Equus fossils are abundant. In the early 20th century, many famous paleontologists studied Equus fossils from China. In 1935, Austrian paleontologist Zdansky published first monograph of Equus fossils in China. He described Equus fossils from Hebei, Henan, Shanxi, and Shandong, and identified all the stenonid specimens as Equus cf. sanmeniensis. These fossils were collected by Swedish geologist Andersson who was engaged as a mining advisor to the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce of the Chinese government in that time. Later these fossils were sent to Uppsala, Sweden, formed a part of the Lagrelius Collection, the largest Chinese fossil collection kept abroad. It is no doubt that Zdansky’s monograph on such a classical collection has great scientific significance. However, it is not so proper to ascribe so many specimens with different sizes and features.