Archaeologists have completed the restoration of Britain’s oldest chalk figure, the Bronze Age Uffington White Horse.
Following a series of examinations last year, including analysis of previous on-ground measurements and aerial surveys, experts from the National Trust and Oxford Archaeology decided the 3,000-year-old Oxfordshire landmark was in need of repair.
Most of damaged inflicted on the 111-metre-long horse were the result of grass encroachment and a loss of topsoil from the site around the figure, which sits on the upper slopes of Whitehorse Hill in the south-west of the English county.
The most notable areas in need of work were the head and neck, which had narrowed to less than half of their original width.
The archaeologists' main objective was to carefully remove the overgrown turf to reveal the original edge of the horse and re-distributed some of the top layer of chalk.
The Uffington White Horse is the oldest scientifically dated chalk figure in Britain, dating back to the late Bronze Age. But experts still don't know for certain what its original purpose was, says National Trust Archaeologist Adrian Cox.
"It could have been a way of marking territory or as a tribal symbol. What we do know is that through the efforts of generations of local people, the horse has been cared for, allowing it to survive for thousands of years to become an iconic feature of this landscape.”
The restoration works also gave the team of archaeologists a chance to find out new information about the historic site. Samples taken in the 1990s confirmed the landmark as Britain’s oldest chalk figure, but new dating techniques, including Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating, will allow experts to refine the date even further.
Using soil samples taken from the deepest layers of figure, OSL dating analyses materials such as quartz and feldspar to find out the last time they were exposed to sunlight, thus hinting at when the ground was first worked.
"Now the hard work is done, and we can see elements of the monument restored to its former glory, we will be eagerly awaiting the results of research to see what new information this will bring to light,” said Oxford Archaeology Project Manager Mark Dodd.
Results of the testing are expected later this year.
Uffington White Horse restoration: before and after
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