Arab general al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf al-Thaqafi asked a man of the ancient Bedouin tribe of Hilal by the name of Ayub ibn Zayd ibn Qays about the characteristics of a good horse, the latter replied: “Three short ones; three long ones; three broad ones amd three clear ones; when asked to decribe these features, the man from Bani Hilal replied: Short back; short thighs [Correction: cannon bones, in arabic “saq”, for “legs”]; short coccyx (the bones of the tail) Long ears; long neck; long arms [Update: above the knees, in both the front and back]; Broad foreheads; broad nostrils; broad chest; Clear skin [Update: around the nostrils and the eyes]; clear eyes; clear hooves.