Shaping the Landscape

Many thanks to Rebecca Boardman for sharing on the OBOD Facbook page today  Mike Petts’ amazing sculptural earthwork in Caerphilly, Wales. The sculpture is a 200 metre homage to the Pit Ponies that toiled in the coal mines and is affectionately called ‘Sultan’ after a well known pony who worked the local mines. Mike Petts used 60,000 tons of coal shale to construct the figure which took three years to complete.

Martin Mere Bird Observatory

‘Sultan’ is very reminiscent of a chalk hill carving; he stretches out across the land bringing to mind the Uffington White Horse. The lives of the pit ponies was desperately hard and there is something rather lovely about the way this sculpture appears to be running free. The giant hoof prints that surround the piece are a nice touch too!

Mike Petts has also created a wonderful bird observatory in the shape of a Marsh Harrier and an amphitheater in the shape of a Boar!

The Boar’s Snout

These fabulous images were captured by aerial photographer Steve Brockett.