Outraged by pre-historic jockey!

A few months ago, I mentioned one of my local pre-historic monuments, the Uffington White Horse.  It is one of a collection of hillside art, carved in the chalk of Southern England.

Uffington White Horse unblemished

One morning this week, people living close to the site of this ancient monument woke up to a surprise.  Some described it as desecration.  Others were appalled that anyone could have committed an act of rural graffiti like this.

The Uffington White Horse had acquired an Uffington White Jockey, courtesy of a company called Paddy Power, in advance of Cheltenham Festival this week.

Uffington Jockey - tastefully executed and sadly removed!

Outraged or not (see Oxford Mail's article), I think that the enterprise was carried out rather well.  The jockey is designed very much in sympathy with the style of the original horse, using white canvas pegged to the gorund.

Don't worry - no white horses were harmed.  Sadly the spectacle was removed before enough people had a chance to enjoy it, demonstrating that a sense of humour is not a necessary qualification for the officials of the National Trust.

Even more sadly - much more harm will be done to real horses in order to ensure that Paddy Power continues to profit from other people's gambling stupidity.


Related post: White Horses in the Chalk