All horses are stunningly charming creatures, but there’s one breed with a special coat that helps it shine like no other! Meet the Akhal-Teke, an endearing species that is dubbed as the “world’s most beautiful horse”, aka the “golden horse”.

Image credits: Pascal Mouawad

Originated from Turkmenistan, the Akhal-Teke is famous worldwide thanks to its glossy metallic sheen that can reflect and refract light just like how metal does.

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The secret lies in the proteins in its hairs, which are arranged in a special way so they could work as a prism for the light to travel through naturally.

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The Akhal-Teke comes in a variety of different colors including bay, black, chestnut, and gray, but its distinctive coat looks most gorgeous on the cream ones.

Image credits: Pascal Mouawad

Despite its fairy-like, magical appearance, this incredible breed is actually impressively athletic. It is thought to be one of the oldest horse breeds that have made it through countless environmental changes and are still thriving today.

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With admirably amazing endurance, the Akhal-Teke can adapt to plenty of different habitats and is really excellent at sports and long rides.

Image credits: Burak CALISKAN

Even though this lovely critter could be spotted once in a while throughout Europe and North America, it is mostly found in its homeland Turkmenistan. In fact, this horse is so appreciated there that not many locals have the audacity to export it out of the country since such action could lead them to a tragic end.

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At this moment, there are an estimated 6,000 Akhal-Tekes in this world, making it a rare breed that is called “horses from heaven” by the Chinese.