For millennia, the aurochs was a central figure in human culture. They were the primary subjects of the famous 21,000-year-old Lascaux cave paintings and symbolised power and sexual potency in ancient Near East religions.

: Even Julius Caesar was intimidated, describing them as "little below the elephant in size" and so fast and strong they "spare neither man nor wild beast". The Human Interaction aurochs

: Bulls were typically black with a pale "eel stripe" down their spine, while cows were reddish-brown. For millennia, the aurochs was a central figure

: Both sexes carried massive, forward-curving horns that could grow up to 42 inches long. The Human Interaction : Bulls were typically black

Two million years ago, the first aurochs emerged in India, eventually migrating across Asia, Europe, and North Africa. These were "super-beefy" beasts that stood nearly six feet (1.8 meters) tall at the shoulder and weighed over a ton.