samples obtained from wild horses in prehistoric deposits, while other mtDNA-haplotypes have only been found in domesticated horses, from both living individuals and archeological finds. The Exmoor pony has a high frequency of pre-domestication mtDNA-haplotypes; these are also found in some other breeds all around the world. Currently, for the British Isles, few DNA archeological samples have been studied. Although wild horses were abundant after the last ice age, the lack of sufficient pre-domestication DNA samples makes it impossible to determine the contribution of the wild horses of the British Islands to modern breeds, including the Exmoor pony. A 1995 study of morphological characteristics, the outward appearance of organisms, indicated that the Exmoor, the Pottock, and the now-extinct Tarpan have an extremely close resemblance; these breeds were consistently grouped together in the results from several analyses, with the Exmoor showing the closest relationship to the Tarpan of all the breeds studied, at 0.27; the next-closest breeds to the Tarpan were the Pottock and Merens, both with a genetic distance from the Tarpan of 0.47. The distance between the Exmoor and Pottock was 0.37, and between the Exmoor and Merens was 0.40; a significantly wider gap than the distance between the Exmoor and Tarpan. The first indication of domesticated horses in England comes from archaeological investigations showing that the ancient Britons were using wheeled horse-drawn transport extensively in southwest England as early as 400 BC. Recent research has indicated that there was significant Roman involvement in mining on Exmoor. Metals including iron, tin, and copper were transported to Hengistbury Head in neighbouring Dorset for export, and Roman carvings, showing British and Roman chariots pulled by ponies phenotypically similar to the Exmoor, have been found in Somerset. Characteristics The Exmoor pony coat colour is predominantly a variant of dark bay, called "brown", with some individuals lighter and termed "bay" and more rarely some described as “Exmoor dun” (not the same as “dun” elsewhere in horses). All Exmoors display pangaré ("mealy") markings around the eyes, muzzle and underbelly. Pangaré markings occur in other equines as well as horses, and are considered to be a primitive trait. In order to be registered in the stud book Exmoor ponies cannot have white markings. In height, the majority of Exmoors range from (45 to 51 inches, 114 to 130 cm), with the recommended height limit for mares being (50 inches, 127 cms) and that for stallions