Last week my friend and I took a road trip, and accidentally came across the
Kilburn White Horse which is a figure cut into the hillside in the North Yorkshire Moors National Park. The horse was created in 1857 and covers about 1.6 acres. The shape of the horse can be seen from miles around, so much so that during World War Two it was covered over to prevent it
from becoming a conspicuous navigation landmark for enemy bombers.
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| This is a photo I took from the journey up to the White Horse |
The hillside which it is cut from is naturally formed of sandstone
and the horse was created by removing the topsoil to expose the
underlying rock, and then covering it with white chips of limestone.
This material has been chosen as it is very durable. What I like about the figure is that it is made
entirely from natural materials, and that these materials respect the
look and feel of the surrounding area. And although the figure has been
designed and created by man, you would be forgiven for thinking that
this is a natural rock pattern in the landscape.
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| This is a photo I took from the car park |
The horse regularly battles storms and other natural forces such as
erosion and land subsidence. And unfortunately, due to the nature of
limestone the figure is now a dull, greyish color close up and not as
striking as it probably once was. The
Kilburn White Horse Association
has been set up to help preserve the horse. They have whitened some
areas with additional limestone pieces, and have also used wooden planks
around the outline to help stop erosion and subsidence.
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| I like this photo which was taken on the way home |
