Horse topiary
A horse topiary is a full-bodied horse built on welded, galvanized steel and finished in moss or outdoor foliage — grazing, standing or rearing. It is one of the hardest animals to get right, because the proportions of a horse are familiar to almost everyone, and it is one of the most commissioned pieces we build for paddocks, entrances and equestrian venues.
Made in our own workshopWelded, galvanized and covered here — not drop-shipped.
Ships across US & CanadaSmall pieces by UPS, large ones by freight with delivery quoted.
Built to outlast the foliageGalvanized steel under everything, including the welds.
4–10 weeks for a commissionReady-made pieces leave sooner; we tell you which before you pay.
In the workshop now
8 horse pieces, from $135.
Horse Topiary, Wire frame, 17 in
$135
Horse Topiary, Mossed, 17 in
$179
Horse Topiary, Mossed, 37 in
$357
Rearing Horse Scrap Metal Sculpture, Spanish Style
Priced on quote
Life-Size Rearing Horse Topiary
Priced on quote
Life-Size Running Horse & Cowboy Metal Sculpture
Priced on quote
Horse Topiary, Wire frame
Priced on quote
Dancing Horse Topiary, Wire frame, 48 in
Priced on quote
How it is finished
The same horse, four ways.
Every piece starts as the same welded, galvanized steel frame. What goes over it is the choice.
A rearing horse is a structural problem.
A grazing horse rests its weight on four legs and is straightforward. A rearing horse puts the whole mass of the body over two, several feet in the air, which means the load has to be carried down through the hind legs and into a base heavy or fixed enough to hold it.
That is why a rearing piece is engineered before it is shaped, and why the base specification is part of the quote rather than an afterthought.
Horse frames and finished pieces sit in wire frame topiary and mossed animal topiary.
What it needs once it is standing.
A mossed piece wants misting through dry spells and a refresh of the moss every year or so. A bare frame wants nothing at all until you decide to plant it. Turf and artificial pieces want an occasional rinse and no more — no watering, no trimming, no seasonal work.
The steel underneath is the part that decides how long the piece lasts, and galvanized steel outdoors is measured in decades rather than seasons.
Full instructions by material are on our care pages; if a piece has gone tired, this eight-year-old swan shows what a restoration looks like.
In the workshop
Steel first, then green.
Three of the six stages every piece goes through. The frame is the sculpture; everything after it is surface.
02Steel rod, bent and weldedSteel rod bent by hand and welded into a cage that carries the pose. Anything over six feet also gets steel tubing run inside it.
03Galvanized, welds includedGalvanized over every surface including the welds — which is exactly where outdoor steel fails first.
04Sphagnum packed by handLong-fibre sphagnum packed into the cage by hand and bound down, so the piece is green the day it arrives.
The full sequence — drawing, welding, galvanizing, mossing, planting and installation — is set out step by step in how a topiary form is made.
Before you order
Horse topiary questions, answered.
Do you make life-size horses?
Yes. Life-size is the most requested scale for paddock entrances, equestrian centres and driveways, and it is well within what the workshop builds.
Rearing or standing?
Both. A standing or grazing horse is simpler to site anywhere; a rearing horse needs a proper footing because of where the weight sits, which we specify with the quote.
What is it covered in?
The horses in stock are mossed or bare galvanized frames. For a commission we also build in artificial outdoor foliage, which suits full sun where nobody will be maintaining the piece.
Can it go in a field?
It can, on a level anchored footing rather than a spike, and clear of anything that will lean on it. Livestock and topiary are not a good combination.
How long does one take?
Four to ten weeks depending on scale and finish, quoted with delivery and installation where the piece needs it.
Other animals we build
Bunny topiary · Dinosaur topiary · Dog topiary · Elephant topiary · Deer topiary · Swan topiary · Giraffe topiary · Frog topiary · Bear topiary
Something bigger?
Tell us the animal and the size.
Send a photograph or a sketch with the height you need and where it will stand. We come back with a design, a price and a delivery date — then build it in our own workshop.
