Location: On the north-facing slope of Windover Hill south of Wilmington, which is itself 3 miles north-west of Eastbourne. (TQ 542034)
I'his figure, who is also known as the Lanky Man or the Lone Man and even, w hen overgrown with grass, as the Green Man, is 231 feet 6 inches tall. His staffs are 237 feet 6 inches and 241 feet 6 inches high, and are 115 feet apart. The shape we see today was outlined in pale yellow brick by members of the Sussex Archaeological 4'rust in 1874 and shows a slim, athletic figure facing the onlooker and holding a long staff in each hand. 4'here is in existence a rough sketch made in 1779 by Sir William Burrell which shows a much stockier figure with bent knees, toes pointing outwards, and holding a rake in the right hand and a scythe in the left. 'Ehough this drawing was not done on site and is probably inaccurate in detail, it does indicate that earlier the figure may have looked rather different from what it does today. In fact in earlier centuries it was not easily seen because the trench marking the outline was customarily overgrown and its shape could only be discerned by the strong side light of a rising sun. Perhaps this was the way in which it was meant to be seen - only by those who secretly worshipped whatever deity the Long Man represented.
The age of this figure is completely unknown and its appearance provides even fewer clues than do those of the enigmatic Cerne Abbas Giant or Uffington White Horse. Speculation has attached the names of various humans and deities to the Long Man, including Baldur, Beowulf, Woden, Thor, Varuna, Bootes, Apollo and Mercury, as well as IVlohammed and St Paul, those last two because it was a popular belief that the figure of a cock was sometimes faintly visible on the hillside to the right of the figure and they were both associated with that bird. The Long Man has also been identified as a Roman standard bearer and an ancient British surveyor. The Saxon King Harold used the figure of a fighting man as an emblem and some have suggested that the Long Man represents this; others think that he was cut on the hillside by the monks of Wilmington Priory as a sign to pilgrims to indicate a safe lodging for the night. Much more information on the history and possible interpretations of this enigmatic figure can be found in a recent book, The Wilmington Giant by Rodney Castleden.
Whether the Long Man was first cut centuries ago by a prehistoric tribe, or on an eighteenth-century whim, we shall probably never know; but he continues to keep watch across the Sussex Downs, and to keep his secrets.
Long Man of Wilmington.
World History
