The Kelpies horse statues lit up at night at the Helix Park in Falkirk, Scotland. The horses and their steel images represent everything about the heritage of the heavy horse in Scotland’s industry and commerce.Įach sculpture weighs 300 tons and is clad in 990 stainless-steel plates on a steel skeleton. Sculptor Andy Scott modelled the head and neck images on two Clydesdales named Duke and Baron. They are built of structural steel with a stainless-steel cladding. The monuments stand 30.48 metres (100 feet) tall and weigh over 272 tons. More than statues to honour the mythical Kelpies, they are monuments to honour the horse-powered heritage of Scotland, notably the Clydesdale. Between Falkirk and Grangemouth stand the largest equine sculptures in the world. Today, though, the Kelpies are celebrated in sheer modern-age beauty. In historical times, when superstition was at the centre of many pagan cultures, demons and water spirits were a possible way of rationalizing the drowning of young children who had accidentally slipped on dangerous riverbanks. And maybe the stories arose from the long-ago time when horse sacrifices were practiced in ancient Scandinavia. The legends are thought to have served the practical purpose of keeping children away from dangerous rushing waters, or warning adolescent girls to be wary of attractive strangers. The name “Kelpie” may have come from the Gaelic word “cailpeach” or “colpach,” meaning heifer or colt. And in Scotland there is another water horse, the ‘Each-uisge’, which lurks in lochs and is reputed to be even more vicious than the kelpie.Folk tales of the legendary water horses have abounded for centuries. In Welsh folklore there are tales of the ‘Ceffyl Dŵr’.
In Orkney there is the nuggle, in Shetland the shoopiltee and in the Isle of Man, the ‘Cabbyl-ushtey’. There are many similar tales of water horses in mythology. The other nine children are dragged into the water, never to be seen again. He manages to cut off his finger and escapes. The child strokes its nose and his finger becomes stuck fast. Having lured nine children onto its back, it chases after the tenth. The kelpie is even mentioned in Robert Burns’ poem, ‘Address to the Deil’:Ī common Scottish folk tale is that of the kelpie and the ten children. It is rumoured that the MacGregor clan have a kelpies bridle, passed down through the generations and said to have come from an ancestor who took it from a kelpie near Loch Slochd. A captive kelpie is said to have the strength of at least 10 horses and the stamina of many more, and is highly prized. Anyone who can get hold of a kelpie’s bridle will have command over it and any other kelpie. And if you are passing by a river and hear an unearthly wailing or howling, take care: it could be a kelpie warning of an approaching storm.īut there is some good news: a kelpie has a weak spot – its bridle. The sound of a kelpie’s tail entering the water is said to resemble that of thunder. Kelpies can also use their magical powers to summon up a flood in order to sweep a traveller away to a watery grave. Or they might take on the form of a hairy human lurking by the river, ready to jump out at unsuspecting travellers and crush them to death in a vice-like grip. They may materialize as a beautiful young woman, hoping to lure young men to their death. These water horses can also appear in human form. It is particularly attractive to children – but they should take care, for once on its back, its sticky magical hide will not allow them to dismount! Once trapped in this way, the kelpie will drag the child into the river and then eat him. The Kelpies in Falkirk (photo © Beninjam200, WikiCommons)īut beware…these are malevolent spirits! The kelpie may appear as a tame pony beside a river. Kelpies are said to haunt rivers and streams, usually in the shape of a horse. Its name may derive from the Scottish Gaelic words ‘cailpeach’ or ‘colpach’, meaning heifer or colt. Unveiled in April 2014, these 30-metre high horse-head sculptures are situated in Helix Park near the M9 Motorway and are a monument to Scotland’s horse-powered industrial heritage.Ī kelpie is a shape-changing aquatic spirit of Scottish legend.
Falkirk in Scotland is home to The Kelpies, the largest equine sculpture in the world.
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