Black Horse Breeds

The list of horse breeds that can be black might as well be endless, however there are a few breeds for which a glossy black coat is their signature.

Majestic Black

Many horse lovers will agree that there is something rather majestic about a coal black steed…of course The Black Stallion comes to mind. It’s interesting to note that many of the breeds listed below come from somewhere in Europe (or their ancestors where likely brought from somewhere in Europe).

I’m no geneticist, however this lends a strong argument to many of them sharing a common equine ancestor.

Prehistoric Black

There are a few names on the list you may recognize and others you may never have heard of. One of the oldest black breeds is the Ariegeois, which is thought to be a prehistoric ancestor of both the noble Friesian & the handsome Dales Pony. Another ancient breed is the Basque Pony which may date back well over 10,000 years.

Black Breeds

Ariegeois
Asturcon
Basque Pony
Calvinia
Canadian Horse
Chalosse Pony
Dales Pony
Esperia Pony
Fell Pony
Friesian
Kabarda
Kladruby
Losino
Menorquin Horse
Murgese
Mallorquin Horse
Nonius
San Fratello

Breeds by Color

As I’ve been organizing breeds by country lately, I started looking at other ways to organize the many breeds of the equine world. Color seems to be an obvious target and it’s rather interesting to see where the different colors might have originated and how they spread. Stay tuned, I may be taking a break from art to write about a different type of colorful subject. To learn more about breeds & colors, be sure to check out my extensive breed & color sections.