Uffington, England ? Galloping across the Berkshire Downs, yet never getting anywhere, the White Horse of Uffington is one of the great mysteries of the English countryside.

The stylized figure, some 360 feet long, was gouged from the white chalk bedrock some 3,000 years ago. But why and by whom remains an enigma.

“The latest theory is that it was dedicated to the Celtic goddess Epona who represented the triumph of good over evil,” says Sharon Smith, curator of a small museum behind the village church in Uffington.

Over the centuries, legends and folklore have gathered around the horse. Historians in the 18th century argued the elegant design was ordered by King Alfred to celebrate his victory over the pagan Danes in 871.

Others say the design was cut by Hengist, the leader of Anglo Saxon hordes in the 5th century, in the image of the horse on his standard. Folklore also claims the chalk carving is not a horse at all, but the dragon killed by St. George, England’s patron saint.

“None of these myths can tell us who made the horse or why,” says David Miles, chief archaeologist at English Heritage. “But we can say when it was made and how.”

Miles surveyed the site in the 1990s and discovered the horse was made by digging trenches 3 feet deep and filling it with rammed chalk.

Using a process called Optical Stimulated Luminescence, Miles and his team from the Oxford Archaeological Unit determined the lower levels of chalk were last exposed to sunlight in the late Bronze Age, some 3,000 years ago. “Which makes it by far the oldest chalk hill figure in England,” Miles said.

High horse view

The horse is set in a dramatic landscape, sculpted by the glaciers of the last Ice Age, and stands guard over the undulating, verdant farmland in the valley below. Although partially visible for miles around, the full shape can only truly be seen from the air, suggesting it had a strong religious significance.

“If the horse was built for the ancestors to see from up in the sky, it was very well placed,” Miles says.

“In the late Bronze Age horse riding was very new and of great significance. Horses were regarded not only as a powerful weapon but were also seen as an important religious animal.

“There is thought to have been a cult worshipping a horse, and one of these symbols was the horse pulling sun chariots through the sky.”

The White Horse is easy to find. The charming village of Uffington, in the heart of the Oxfordshire countryside, is a mere 2 hours drive from London.

From there, visitors can drive a couple of miles to a small car park and take an easy 20-minute walk across the grassy downs to see the figure close up.

Rituals and folklore

Some say the horse marks one of many ley-lines crisscrossing the country, and the eye of the horse is said to mark the point where the earth’s force is particularly intense.

“The local folklore has it if you turn round three times in the eye of the horse and make a wish, it will be granted,” Smith says.

The National Trust, which owns the site, prefers visitors do not stand on the carving, however.

Smith is a fountain of knowledge about Uffington’s history and happy to chat with visitors about the many customs and rituals that have grown up around the chalk carving.

One such ritual is the “scouring,” when locals would gather to clean the chalk and keep it free of grass. Archives show the scouring of 1857 drew thousands of people from neighboring counties and London, eager to see the horse and take part in games such as pig chasing and greasy pole climbing.

“Local people are very proud of their horse,” Smith says. “The old people always comment on it. One of the local sayings is, ‘When the horse looks close, it is going to rain, but when the horse looks far away, it is going to be fine.”‘

Best of countryside

The White Horse is just one of many reasons to take a weekend break from London to visit the countryside in Oxfordshire.

Lush pastureland and fields of corn stretch to the horizon. Winding country lanes, lined with hedgerows bursting with flowers, lead to picturesque villages and market towns complete with thatched cottages dating back to the 16th century.

Traditional inns preserve the great traditions of the English countryside  serving real ales such as Old Speckled Hen and Green King and fresh country produce, including pheasant, duck and trout.

This corner of Oxfordshire, replete with thousands of years of history and the enduring mystery of the White Horse, is rural England at its very best.