This is sociologically fascinating.
The switchbacks are clearly optimized for not covering ground, so this is definitely a ceremonial procession rather than a pragmatic attempt to get from A to B, a hypothesis also supported (no pun intended) by the selection of uniform-looking young women rather than strong men as porters.
Then there's the question of the Longfurb's physiology. To what extent are the differences between the Longfurb and the smaller Furbs a result of genetics, to what extent a result of age, to what extent a result of abundant food and leisure, and to what extent a result of deliberate choice? And what effect do those differences have on the Longfurb's physical abilities? Are we looking at a well-fed, highly-trained military aristocrat in the prime of a technologically extended life? Or is this the Furbian equivalent of the Chinese empresses who showed off their armies of servants by allowing their fingernails to grow cripplingly long?
And of course, when integrating this new evidence into our theories, we must view it with the critical eye of a historian. How much can the frieze be relied upon as a realistic depiction of the Longfurb's length, and how much is flattering artistic exaggeration? And while the porters behind the foremost appear to find their burdens fairly light, the artist was doubtless a Furb themself, perceiving the situation (or perhaps failing to perceive it) through the rose-colored glasses of privilege.
As with any great archaeological find, this frieze answers a hundred questions and raises a thousand more. Though ancient Furbian civilization is shrouded in mystery, I have every hope that further finds and improved analysis will eventually shed light on both this rich and fascinating culture, and on the human rebellions that brought it to an end.
