Leucippotomy is the art of carving

Petroglyph

Petroglyphs are pictogram and logogram images created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, and abrading. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions of the technique to refer to such images...

 white horses in chalk

Chalk

Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....

 upland areas, particularly as practised in southern England

Southern England

Southern England, the South and the South of England are imprecise terms used to refer to the southern counties of England bordering the English Midlands. It has a number of different interpretations of its geographic extents. The South is considered by many to be a cultural region with a distinct...

. The practice is apparently of prehistoric

Prehistory

Prehistory is the span of time before recorded history. Prehistory can refer to the period of human existence before the availability of those written records with which recorded history begins. More broadly, it refers to all the time preceding human existence and the invention of writing...

 origin; the Uffington White Horse

Uffington White Horse

The Uffington White Horse is a highly stylised prehistoric hill figure, 110 m long , formed from deep trenches filled with crushed white chalk...

, near The Ridgeway

The Ridgeway

thumb|right|thumb|The ancient tree-lined path winds over the downs countrysideThe Ridgeway is a ridgeway or ancient trackway described as Britain's oldest road...

, has been dated to between 1400 and 600 BC. The Uffington White Horse is the most famous and most ancient hill figure

Hill figure

A hill figure is a large visual representation created by cutting into a steep hillside and revealing the underlying geology. It is a type of geoglyph usually designed to be seen from afar rather than above. In some cases trenches are dug and rubble made from material brighter than the natural...

 in England. The most recent may be the Folkestone White Horse

Folkestone White Horse

The Folkestone White Horse is a white horse hill figure, carved into Cheriton Hill, Folkestone, Kent, South East England. It overlooks the English terminal of the Channel Tunnel and was completed in June 2003....

, built in 2003 near the English opening of the Channel Tunnel

Channel Tunnel

The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...

.

The practice of cutting human hill figures is known as gigantotomy

Gigantotomy

Gigantotomy is the art of carving human-shaped hill figures, gigantic figures visible in chalk or other light-coloured material.Bergamar, Kate . Discovering Hill Figures. Pub. Shire. ISBN 0-7478-0345-5...

. Examples in the British Isles of uncertain but probably modern origin include the Cerne Abbas giant

Cerne Abbas giant

The Cerne Abbas Giant, also referred to as the Rude Man or the Rude Giant, is a hill figure of a giant naked man on a hillside near the village of Cerne Abbas, to the north of Dorchester, in Dorset, England. The high, wide figure is carved into the side of a steep hill, and is best viewed from...

 and the Long Man of Wilmington

Long Man of Wilmington

The Long Man of Wilmington is a hill figure located in Wilmington, East Sussex, England on the steep slopes of Windover Hill, northwest of Eastbourne. The Long Man is tall and designed to look in proportion when viewed from below....

.Bergamar, Kate (1997). Discovering Hill Figures. Pub. Shire. ISBN 0-7478-0345-5.

There are 16 known white horse hill figures in the UK, or 17 including the painted one at Cleadon Hills. There is also a recently discovered crop-like figure at Whittlesford

Whittlesford

Whittlesford is a village in Cambridgeshire, England, and also the name of an old hundred. The village is situated on the Granta branch of the River Cam, seven miles south of Cambridge...

 resembling a horse, thus making 18.

The Luzley White Horse, cut in the 1980s, is not completely lost, as some of it can still be seen, although it is no longer maintained.

Current figures

Name	County	Cutting date
Uffington White Horse Uffington White Horse The Uffington White Horse is a highly stylised prehistoric hill figure, 110 m long , formed from deep trenches filled with crushed white chalk...	Oxfordshire Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....	1000 BC
Westbury White Horse Westbury White Horse The Westbury or Bratton White Horse is a hill figure on the escarpment of Salisbury Plain, approximately east of Westbury in England. Located on the edge of Bratton Downs and lying just below an Iron Age hill fort, it is the oldest of several white horses carved in Wiltshire...	Wiltshire Wiltshire Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...	1778
Cherhill White Horse Cherhill White Horse The Cherhill White Horse is a hill figure on Cherhill Down, 3.5 miles east of Calne in Wiltshire, England. Dating from the late 18th century, it is the third oldest of several such white horses in Great Britain, with only the Uffington White Horse and the Westbury White Horse being older...	Wiltshire	1780
Mormond White Horse	Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area.The present day Aberdeenshire council area does not include the City of Aberdeen, now a separate council area, from which its name derives. Together, the modern council area and the city formed historic...	1790s
Marlborough White Horse Marlborough White Horse The Marlborough White Horse, also called the Preshute White Horse, is a hill figure on Granham Hill, a fairly shallow slope of the downland above the village of Preshute, near Marlborough in the county of Wiltshire, England...	Wiltshire	1804
Osmington White Horse Osmington White Horse The Osmington White Horse is a hill figure sculpted in 1808 into the limestone Osmington hill just north of Weymouth called the South Dorset Downs, within the parish of Osmington....	Dorset Dorset Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...	1808
Alton Barnes White Horse	Wiltshire	1812
Hackpen White Horse	Wiltshire	1838
Woolbury White Horse	Hampshire Hampshire Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...	Before 1846
Kilburn White Horse Kilburn White Horse The Kilburn white horse, , is a hill figure formed in the hillside near the village of Kilburn, in North Yorkshire, England. The horse is long by high and covers about and is said to be the largest and most northerly in England....	North Yorkshire North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...	1857
Broad Town Broad Town Broad Town is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, 8 miles south-west of Swindon. According to the 2001 census its population is 584.The parish has an active social club that is open on a Friday evening from 8pm located in the village hall...  White Horse	Wiltshire	1864
Cleadon Cleadon Cleadon is a suburban village in South Tyneside, North East England in the county of Tyne and Wear. The population of Cleadon is 4,795, and there are a few shops including Bon Appetit Deli, Boutiques store and a Post Office. Cleadon is a short walk from the local East Boldon Metro Station. Nearby...  White Horse	South Tyneside South Tyneside South Tyneside is a metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear in North East England.It is bordered by four other boroughs - Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead to the west, Sunderland in the south, and North Tyneside to the north. The border county of Northumberland lies further north...	Before 1887
Litlington White Horse	Sussex Sussex Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...	1924
Pewsey White Horse	Wiltshire	1937
Devizes White Horse	Wiltshire	1999
Heeley Heeley Heeley is a former cluster of villages now a suburb in the south of the City of Sheffield, England. The village has existed at least since 1343, its name deriving from Heah Leah, High Lea then Hely, meaning a high, woodland clearing...  White Horse	Yorkshire Yorkshire Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...	2000
Folkestone White Horse Folkestone White Horse The Folkestone White Horse is a white horse hill figure, carved into Cheriton Hill, Folkestone, Kent, South East England. It overlooks the English terminal of the Channel Tunnel and was completed in June 2003....	Kent Kent Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...	2003

Lost figures

Name	County	Cut	Lost	Replaced by
Old Westbury Westbury, Wiltshire Westbury is a town and civil parish in the west of the English county of Wiltshire, most famous for the Westbury White Horse.-Name:The most likely origin of the West- in Westbury is simply that the town is near the western edge of the county of Wiltshire, the bounds of which have been much the same...  White Horse	Wiltshire Wiltshire Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...	878?	Before 1778	New Westbury White Horse Westbury White Horse The Westbury or Bratton White Horse is a hill figure on the escarpment of Salisbury Plain, approximately east of Westbury in England. Located on the edge of Bratton Downs and lying just below an Iron Age hill fort, it is the oldest of several white horses carved in Wiltshire...
Old Pewsey Pewsey Pewsey is a large village, often considered a small town, at the centre of the Vale of Pewsey in Wiltshire about west of London. It is well connected to London, the West Country and Wales being close to the M4 motorway and the A303. Also, the village is served by Pewsey railway station on the...  White Horse	Wiltshire	1785	1940	New Pewsey White Horse
Pistone Hill White Horse	Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....	1809?	Before 1990	-
Old Litlington White Horse	Sussex Sussex Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...	1838	1924	New Litlington White Horse
Old Devizes Devizes Devizes is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The town is about southeast of Chippenham and about east of Trowbridge.Devizes serves as a centre for banks, solicitors and shops, with a large open market place where a market is held once a week...  White Horse	Wiltshire	1845	Before 1999	New Devizes Devizes Devizes is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The town is about southeast of Chippenham and about east of Trowbridge.Devizes serves as a centre for banks, solicitors and shops, with a large open market place where a market is held once a week...  White Horse
Inkpen White Horse	Wiltshire	1868?	Before 1990	-
Hindhead Hindhead Hindhead is a village in Surrey, England, about 11 miles south-west of Guildford. Neighbouring settlements include Haslemere, Grayshott and Beacon Hill. Hindhead is the highest village in Surrey...  White Horse	Surrey Surrey Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...	Before 1913	1939	-
Rockley Rockley Rockley can refer to:People*Baron Rockley, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, served by:** Evelyn Cecil, 1st Baron Rockley ** Robert William Evelyn Cecil, 2nd Baron Rockley ** James Hugh Cecil, 3rd Baron Rockley Rockley can refer to:People*Baron Rockley, a title in the Peerage of the...  White Horse	Wiltshire	Discovered 1948	After 1950, Before 1990	-
Tan Hill White Horse/Donkey	Wiltshire	Before 1975	After 1975, Before 1990	-
Luzley White Horse	Greater Manchester Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...	1980s	2009	-
Folkestone Folkestone Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...  White Horse mock-up	Kent Kent Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...	1999	1999	Folkestone White Horse Folkestone White Horse The Folkestone White Horse is a white horse hill figure, carved into Cheriton Hill, Folkestone, Kent, South East England. It overlooks the English terminal of the Channel Tunnel and was completed in June 2003....

Possible figures

Name	County	Discovery date	Note
Whittlesford White Horse	Cambridge Cambridge The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...	2004	A crop mark resembling a horse discovered 2004, possibly hinting a previous horse was cut here.
Liddington White Horse	Wiltshire Wiltshire Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...	2000s	Plans for this white horse (including designs) occurred in the 2000s, but the project never happened.