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Hill figure of a white horse formed of quartz stones, completed in the later part of 18th Century. One legend is that Captain Alexander Fraser (9th of Strichen), during the Battle of Gilzen (modern day Gilze) in the Netherlands on the 26th August 1794, had his horse shot from under him. His Sergeant, James Hutcheon, a son of New Deer, dismounted and offered the Captain his horse, but just as the changeover took place the sergeant was killed. After the war Captain Fraser decided to have the horse etched out in white quartz as a memorial to the Sergeant. The other version is that the same Captain saw the famous horse on the Chilterns in England and decided to emulate it here. The horse measures circa 50m from nose to tail and circa 39m from head to hoof, and is a prominent local landmark. The horse is said by locals to have been obscured during World War II in order to prevent it being used as a landmark by enemy bombers.
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Historic Environment Records (HER)