One of the country’s most mysterious artworks is undergoing a once-in-a-decade revamp.
17 tonnes of chalk are laid onto the Cerne Abbas Giant, the origins of which remain a mystery.
Work to keep the chalk bright and visible happens every seven to 10 years, but is starting earlier this time around due to climate change and evolving weather patterns.
The Dorset landmark has been under National Trust ownership for over a century, and every decade, dozens of their staff and volunteers spend around 300 hours renewing the 55-metre-tall chalk outline.
Luke Dawson, lead ranger at the National Trust’s West Dorset & Cranborne Chase area of natural beauty, said: ‘We want to keep on top of it because we’re seeing that it’s starting to overgrow a lot more and fade, and it’s something that people have travelled from all over the country to come and see, and the world even in some instances.’
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The lengthy renewal begins with cattle grazing on Giant Hill, which removes the surrounding grass and allows the figure to remain visible.
The former layer of chalk is then removed, with sharp outlines carved by rangers and their team using spades, followed by the re-chalking.
The steep hill, sloping at a gradient of around one in three, is vulnerable to erosion and requires the chalk to be packed tightly by hand to avoid water damage, weeds and algae from forming.
In previous years, the re-chalking process would usually take place in September, but has started earlier due to changes in weather patterns.
In 2019, just days after fresh chalk was laid, intense rainfall washed it away.
Mr Dawson added: ‘The erosion was in part because of that September rain. With the algae, it’s one that we just can’t predict.
‘If that algae does not get killed off over winter, coupled with the fact that we’re getting wetter summers, it just promotes that algal growth in damp conditions.’
With wetter conditions, rather than a bright white chalk outline, visitors would see a dull, grey-green slime.
The National Trust this year decided to carry out the work in May and trial a new technique, which consists of mixing the chalk with water to create a plaster of Paris-type consistency, before laying it down.
The origin of the figure is unknown and continues to fuel debates. While local records only register its existence in the 17th Century, in 2021, carbon dating analysis proved its existence around 700 to 1100 AD.
Scott Welland, visitor, operations and experience manager at the National Trust in West Dorset, said: ‘One theory is that during that period, the grass grew back.
‘So maybe during that period he disappeared, and no one was aware that he was there until the 1600s period. But we still don’t know why he’s there and why they created him, and that’s a mystery.’
The figure and its wildlife recently entered a new chapter, as the National Trust secured ownership of more than 130 hectares of land surrounding the Giant just months ago.
The appeal, backed by Sir Stephen Fry, reached its £330,000 target in just 60 days and will now secure the protection of species like the Duke of Burgundy butterfly on the site of special scientific interest.
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