Jul27

ponyhenge.

Posted on by
Standard

No one really knows how these old hobby horses got here, but the herd keeps growing.

 ON A SMALL SLICE OF wide-open pasture in the town of Lincoln, Massachusetts, broken-down rocking horses, plastic ponies, metal ponies, and other assorted horse toys have been holding court. As if by magic, ponies have been proliferating along this winding country road, resulting in the peculiar “Ponyhenge.”

The horses started arriving anonymously sometime in 2010, with the placement of a lone hobby horse along picturesque Old Sudbury Road, about 15 miles west of Boston. How and why the rusty little fellow appeared is a mystery, even to Lincolnites who’ve been around a while. One story has the first horse hanging around after a kid’s short-lived lemonade stand, another that he was left over from a Christmas display.

Whatever the real story might be, after the first one appeared things started to get strange. More horses—hobby horses, rocking horses, and horse figurines—began appearing at the site. They are periodically rearranged, sometimes in a circle, sometimes in rows like race horses. Other times they are simply scattered and knocked around, as if they’ve come back from a long night of carousing.

The herd has been growing faster of late, with twice as many horses put out to pasture as there were a couple of years ago. Oddly, no one takes them away—the arrangement only morphs and grows, much to the delight of the family that owns the land. As the owner told the Boston Globe in 2015, “There was something lovely about it being anonymous, and now every time we go away, another one appears.”

While it’s on privately owned land, Ponyhenge is open to anyone who wants to visit.

—

“they swayed about upon a rocking horse. and thought it pegasus.”

-john keats

 

—

credits: atlas obscura, soaringraven

92 responses »

  2. Interesting… I’ve heard about a field somewhere, I think in Virginia, where there are many huge and unusual statues of US presidents…

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply ↓

  6. how wonderful; it’s a testament to the human spirit: how in the harshest of times, people still create magic, making the world a more whimsical place: whimsy and wonder, the twin peaks of a healthy society 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓

  32. Whoever came up with this idea has a great sense of humor. When we’re traveling, I always like to pass this one tree that is filled with tennis shoes.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓

  35. Just the fact that the toy ponies are all in their own little space in our universe, and are left alone for everyone to enjoy, makes my heart happy! Thanx for the bright spot in my day. ♥️

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

Leave a comment