Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United Kingdom Wales Caerphilly Sultan the Pit Pony

Sultan the Pit Pony

The enormous earthwork sculpture honors the ponies that lived and worked in the old colliery.

Caerphilly, Wales

Added By
Kerry Wolfe
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Sultan the Pit Pony.   phil matthews/cc by-sa 2.0
Sultan the Pit Pony.   uplookingdown/used with permission
An on-the-ground look at the pony’s eye.   Jaggery/cc by-sa 2.0
View along the belly and legs from his face   bbjames69 / Atlas Obscura User
View of the horse’s head from ground level   rbenn250 / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

From the ground, this massive sculpture looks like a strange set of lumpy hills. Take to the skies, however, and you’ll see it forms the shape of a pot-bellied pony, its legs outstretched as it gallops gleefully over the land. It’s said to honor Sultan, a beloved pit pony that once worked in the old colliery.

“Pit ponies” were put to work in coal mines throughout the 18th through 20th centuries. In the United Kingdom, the hardy equines were first dispatched underground in 1750. They became more prominent in the 19th century after 26 children tragically drowned while working at the Huskar Colliery. Public outcry put an end to the then-common practice of sending women and children into the mines, and they were replaced by ponies and horses.

The pit ponies lived mainly underground, working an average of eight hours a day and spending their nights in their subterranean stables. They lugged tubs of coal throughout the dark, deep mines, only coming to the surface for the occasional colliery holiday. By 1913, there were 70,000 pit ponies in the U.K. alone (the United States typically favored donkeys and mules). They were highly valuable to the mining companies and, as such, often received better care and stricter regulation than the human workers.

But by the end of the 20th century, modern technology rendered these equine workers obsolete. Great Britain’s last pit pony went above ground in 1999.

Parc Penallta, which sits on the site of the old Penallta Colliery, honors the mine’s nonhuman workers with Sultan the Pit Pony, which is one of the largest figurative earthwork sculptures in the U.K. The enormous equine was created by Welsh artist Mick Petts, who used 60,000 tons of coal shale, dirt, and stone to construct the 656-foot-long (200-meter-long) artwork. The pony was originally unnamed, but it wasn’t long before locals named him after Sultan.

The sculpture was built for a practical reason—it was meant to act as a windbreak to protect the park from strong winds—but the pony serves a recreational purpose, too. Various trails let park visitors crisscross the pony's entire body. You can even walk to its eye, which is formed by a conical structure erected atop Sultan's verdant face. 

Related Tags

Horses Sculptures Mining Seen From Space Giant Animals Art

Know Before You Go

The pony is best viewed from the air. If you're willing to settle for a from-the-ground view, you can visit Parc Penallta from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Community Contributors

Added By

Kerry Wolfe

Edited By

rbenn250, bbjames69

  • rbenn250
  • bbjames69

Published

September 26, 2018

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pit_pony
  • https://mymodernmet.com/mick-petts-sultan-the-pit-pony/
  • https://www.amusingplanet.com/2014/11/sultan-pit-pony.html
  • https://www.countryliving.com/life/a36087/ariel-pit-pony-photos/
  • http://www.visitwales.com/activity-search/activity-search-results/activity-search-details?id=1948266
  • https://books.google.com/books/about/Harnessed.html?id=rmL3PQAACAAJ
  • https://www.boredpanda.com/horse-earth-sculpture-sultan-pit-pony-mick-petts/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic
  • https://your.caerphilly.gov.uk/countryside/sites/your.caerphilly.gov.uk.countryside/files/audiotrails/parcpenalta/transcript_sultan.pdf
Sultan the Pit Pony
Penallta Rd
Caerphilly, Wales
United Kingdom
51.65075, -3.256416
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Tommy Cooper Statue

Caerphilly, Wales

miles away

Morbitorium

Pontywaun, Wales

miles away

Castell Coch (The Red Castle)

Tongwynlais, Wales

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Caerphilly

Caerphilly

Wales

Places 2

Nearby Places

Tommy Cooper Statue

Caerphilly, Wales

miles away

Morbitorium

Pontywaun, Wales

miles away

Castell Coch (The Red Castle)

Tongwynlais, Wales

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Caerphilly

Caerphilly

Wales

Places 2

Related Places

  • The Hackpen White Horse, sporting a cartoonish eye.

    Wiltshire, England

    Hackpen White Horse

    England's only square-dimension hill horse was built to celebrate Queen Victoria's coronation.

  • Folkestone White Horse.

    Folkestone, England

    Folkestone White Horse

    One English town's celebratory landmark spurred more trouble than anticipated.

  • The Alton Barnes White Horse.

    Alton Barnes, England

    Alton Barnes White Horse

    This massive chalk hill carving is one of England's most beloved giant horse geoglyphs.

  • The salmon swimming through the building.

    Portland, Oregon

    Transcendence

    A sculpture of a salmon swimming through a brick building.

  • Viaje Fantástico, the bronze sculpture of a naked woman riding a rooster is in Plaza Vieja.

    Havana, Cuba

    Viaje Fantástico

    No one knows the meaning behind this giant sculpture of a nude woman with a fork riding a rooster in Havana.

  • Cherhill White Horse, Wiltshire.

    Cherhill, England

    Cherhill White Horse

    The geoglyph once sported a glass bottle eye.

  • Sculpture of a child in Jardim do Nêgo.

    Nova Friburgo, Brazil

    Jardim do Nêgo (Nêgo's Garden)

    Moss-covered sculptures fill this small Brazilian gorge.

  • Blue Mustang

    Denver, Colorado

    Blue Mustang

    The Denver airport is guarded by a 32-foot-tall sculpture of a demonic horse.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.