Not a building of interest this week but it’s a sight which captures the attention nonetheless—and often unsuspectedly out of the corner of the eye, and from almost fifty miles away on a clear day.
Gouged into a steep hillside in the North York Moors National Park, just below the mighty escarpment of Sutton Bank, the county’s largest white horse, at least by surface area, is the brainchild of local Victorian businessman Thomas Taylor. Hailing from nearby Kilburn, his work took him across the nation thereby exposing him to the delights of the various chalk hill figures which punctuate the verdant landscape of southern England.
Inspired by these, his desire to bring this southern charm to the north, led him to consult with the village schoolmaster, John Hodgson, and, in the summer of 1857, John and a few helpers set about marking up the outline of a horse on a hillside known as Roulston Scar just above their native village. Thirty-one volunteers then commenced with the actual cutting and, when complete, the 314ft long by 228ft high monument required six tonnes of lime to turn the grey-tinted limestone rock beneath into the artificial stark white needed to catch the eye from a distance.
Today, however, rather than whitewash, this most northly turf-cut figure is dressed in chalk chippings from the nearby Yorkshire Wolds and is then painted to keep the horse as bright as possible. In fact, so brilliant white is this iconic landmark that, during the Second World War, the horse was covered to ensure its location was not exposed to German bombers.
You can visit the horse today by hiking along a path which leads you directly above it, or follow the more linear route along the escarpment to appreciate one of the finest views in the north, from the top of Sutton Bank.
Address: Low Town Bank Rd, Kilburn, Thirsk YO61 4AN
Books by Dr Emma Wells
