Hill Figures

I

Introduction

Hill Figures, large carvings cut into the turf on hillsides, typically found in southern England but increasingly common in other parts of the world. Hill figures usually depict the outline or the solid shape of a horse, a giant, a cross, or other object. Some modern carvings also feature military insignia and advertising logos.

Hill figures are created by revealing the underlying bedrock—usually chalk—and are designed to be visible from far away. Although the majority of English hill figures date from the 18th and early 19th centuries, the oldest surviving example is the Uffington White Horse, near Wantage, in Oxfordshire, which is thought to be around 3,000 years old. In order to prevent the figures from becoming overgrown and being lost, they are periodically scoured, traditionally every seven years.

II

White Horses

The most familiar figures cut into the hillsides are horses; across England there have been nearly 30 carvings of this type, of which 16 are still visible today. A total of 12 white horses have been carved into the chalk hillsides of the Wiltshire Downs—only 7 of which can be seen today. Five of the horses are situated within an 8-km (5-mi) radius of the megalithic monuments of Avebury Circle. The original Westbury White Horse may have been cut to celebrate the victory of King Alfred over the Danes at the Battle of Ethandum in ad 878. This figure has since been replaced by a more recent carving, completed in 1778.

The Uffington White Horse near Wantage, in Oxfordshire, which is thought to date from the Iron Age, is probably the oldest hill figure in Britain. The white horse at Osmington, Dorset, is the largest of the horses, and the only one that features a rider. It was carved in 1808 in honour of King George III. In northern England, a giant white horse was carved into the Hambleton Hills, near the village of Kilburn, in North Yorkshire in 1857. A horse cut into Mormond Hill, Aberdeenshire, is the only white horse carving in Scotland and dates from around 1800. Nearby is a carving of a white stag (cut in 1870); both figures are filled with native white quartz, rather than chalk. Britain’s newest, large-scale white horse figure was carved into Cheriton Hill, a chalk hillside overlooking Folkestone in Kent, in 2003. The project led to protests from environmental groups including English Nature and Friends of the Earth, who complained about the loss of valuable wildlife habitat.

A slightly more unusual type of horse figure once graced the hills above the village of Tysoe, in Warwickshire. The Red Horses of Tysoe were cut into the turf of The Hangings and Spring Hill, exposing the reddish loam soil underneath. Five horses are thought to have been created in the region at various stages between the 17th and early 20th centuries, but all have since disappeared.

III

Giants and Other Figures

Only two of the hillside carvings in Britain depict human figures. The Cerne Abbas Giant, in north-western Dorset, is one of Britain’s most well known hill figures. It was traditionally thought to have been at least 1,500 years old, although recent research suggests that it is actually likely to have originated some time during the 17th century. The Long Man of Wilmington, near Eastbourne, in East Sussex is Britain’s tallest hill figure, measuring some 71.6 m (235 ft) at its tallest point. These two figures have traditionally been associated with numerous fertility and healing rites, and are also important to Druid and pagan revellers, who visit the carvings to celebrate festivals such as Midsummer and Beltane.

Large white crosses are visible on the hills at Bledlow and Whiteleaf in Buckinghamshire and Lenham and Shoreham in Kent. The origins of the Buckinghamshire crosses are unclear; however, the earliest written references date from the mid-18th century. The two Kentish crosses were constructed in the 1920s as a memorial to those who lost their lives during World War I. A crown measuring 55 m (180 ft) across was cut into the hillside at Wye, near Ashford, Kent, in 1902 to commemorate the coronation of King Edward VII.

IV

Modern Carvings

Since the early 20th century, several less traditional designs have been carved into the hillsides of southern England and further afield. A series of military insignia, known as the Fovant Badges, were cut into the turf of the Wiltshire Downs by regiments stationed at training camps on Salisbury Plain during World War I. Originally around 20 badges were thought to have existed, but many of these are no longer visible. The remaining 12 badges were granted ancient monument status in 2003 and are currently being restored as part of a major heritage preservation scheme. Similar badges also appear on hillsides in Hong Kong S. A. R, Pakistan, South Africa, and Canada, and are thought to have been created by British servicemen stationed abroad.

Hill figures are sometimes used as an effective advertising medium and are strategically designed to attract maximum publicity. A large lion figure was cut into the Dunstable Downs, in Bedfordshire, in 1931 to advertise nearby Whipsnade Wild Animal Park. The Newburgh Bear (Warwickshire, 1980) and the Corfe Football Queen (Dorset, 2002) were created to publicize the activities of community arts groups or local festivals. Protestors, pressure groups, and various other publicity-seeking organizations regularly take advantage of the visibility of existing hill figures. In 2003, British television company Channel 4 caused controversy when, with the permission of the National Trust, it painted a 91-m (300-ft) logo on the hillside next to the Uffington White Horse. The Laverstock Panda mysteriously appeared on a hillside just to the east of Salisbury in 1969, and was later revealed to have been a prank by students from the University College of North Wales as part of their rag week activities.