When people are asked about what impresses them most in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, they are very likely to mention Turpan grapes and Hami melons. In fact, Xinjiang is also well known for its fine-breed horses. Two thousand years ago, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) bestowed horses imported from Xinjiang (then called "Western Regions") with the title "heavenly horses."

    The hometown of the "heavenly horses" is the Kazak Autonomous Prefecture of Yili City, located in north Xinjiang. Yili was used to be the territory of the ancient Kingdom of Wusun in the Western Regions.

    According to historical records, the Kingdom of Wusun abounded in fine-breed horses during the Han period: It was not uncommon for a single wealthy household to own as many as 5,000 horses. It is said that the "heavenly horses" were strong muscular horses that sweated blood and could gallop hundreds of miles effortlessly.

    In 115 BC, when the Han court emissary Zhang Qian completed his mission to the Western Regions, a ten-envoy delegation with dozens of fine-breed horses dispatched by the Wusun king escorted Zhang to the Han capital of Chang'an to express their respect to the emperor. Emperor Wu liked the magnificent creatures so much that he called them "heavenly horses."

    Zhang Qian's mission opened up trade on the Silk Road. From then on, the horse trade flourished for centuries, with a large number of fine-breed horses from the Western Regions imported into inland China. The horse trade remarkably facilitated the development of the military, transportation, and production of ancient China.

    There are two major strains of the Yili horses: the Kazak indigenous breed and the improved Yili breed. They are strongly built with sleek coats and muscular legs. It is said that a Yili horse can finish a 1,000-meter race in only 1 minute and 15.4 seconds, even 4.7 seconds faster than the famous Sanhe breed.