Aurochs Bull (boxed) Version 1.0

Hello and thank you for your interest in Ancient Designs products!

This is a detailed, properly sized mesh Aurochs bull that will be perfect for any ancient, medieval or prehistoric sim.

This pack comes with a silent animal verison, as well as one scripted to give out a call at random.

The Aurochs (Latin: Bos primigenius, Polish: Tur) is an ancient species of wild cattle, native to Europe and the middle east. It was a huge, powerfull animal the size of the largest modern cattle breeds. Males were dark colored, while females and young calves were of a chestnut color, both male and female having a white eel stripe on their backs. They lived in large herds, inhabiting mostly grasslands and open woodland.

Humans and the Aurochs had a close and complex relationship. Aurochs feature prominently amongst prehistoric european cave paintings and were food for paleolithic hunters. Images of Aurochs can be found in the middle east, such as on the famed gate of Babylon. Auroch bulls play a key role in ancient Minoan art, as far as suggesting a possible Aurochs-cult among the Minoans of ancient Crete, possibly giving birth to the later legends of the cretean Minotaur. Romans would bring Aurochs as prized animals from the north, often presenting them at the Colloseum.

Sadly, this proud beast was gradually disappearing. Herodotus already mentiones them being extinct in Greece and the middle east in his time. By the late middle ages, the species was all but hunted to extintion.

Poland became the last country where these animals could be found, only 38 individuals were alive by 1564. The kings of Poland established a nature reserve, made hunting the animal illegal and enacted laws which became the first real species conservation effort in Europe.

However, this came too late for the Aurochs. By the early 17th century Royal authority in Poland faced a crisis as a result of internal unrest and foreign wars. Poachers took advantage of this brief situation - in such a small population of animals this proved to be the crucial tipping point that pushed the species beyond the point of no return.

Too few animals survived in what was too small of an area to go on. The kings and the people of Poland were now powerless to stop the demise of the species.

The last known living Aurochs individual, a cow, died of old age in the Jaktorów forest in 1627.

This product aims to pay homage to this magnificent animal and to give it a second life within second life.

Enjoy!