The sculptures represent the animals which hauled heavy carts of coal at Ryhope's pits, which closed in 1966. "The pit pony ...

and in the 19th century some were even sold as pit ponies to pull trains of coal. Lower down the slopes, the ponies keep the grass short enough to provide suitable habitat for the chough.

A pit pony in a coal mine, photograph taken in the early 1900s. There was estimated to be around 200,000 ponies working in British mines during this period. Before railways were introduced ...