the second and first millennia BC to draw chariots and to serve in cavalry units; during the Persian period (538–332 BC) and later, their use for everyday travel became more common. In New Testament times all these means of transportation were used, and the improvement of the road system increased the use of carts and chariots. Travel during the dry summer season was preferred to attempting to negotiate the muddy, rain-soaked terrain in the winter months. The spring and summer seasons were “the time