The Kelpies sculptures by Andy Scott, The Helix, Falkirk, Scotland

Artwork FileFalkirk · Scotland

StandingSep 2026

• #AndyScott
• #TheKelpies
• #Falkirk
• #Clydesdales
• #PublicSculpture
• #ScottishCanals

Duke looks down; Baron throws his head upward. The names came from two real Clydesdales, and the steel horses commemorate the animals that helped work Scotland’s canals and land. Built in 2013 and unveiled in 2014, The Kelpies also hide an engineering story: an abandoned moving-lock idea, a surface designed around motorway glare, and fixings borrowed from trains.

Introduction sources: The Helix, The Scottish Banner, Andy Scott, Urban Realm, Scottish Canals and Ingenia. Status: a dated council report, explained below.

📷 More photos

💡 6 things to know

1. Two models came to the studioAndy Scott told the Scottish Banner that Duke and Baron visited his Maryhill studio in Glasgow while he refined the early models. The finished sculptures inherited their names. The Scottish Banner Checked
2. The name survived a change of directionThe commission began with mythology in mind. Scott redirected it toward central Scotland’s working horses; Scottish Canals traces the name to shape-shifting water horses. The title and the artist’s subject therefore have different starting points. The Scottish Banner · Scottish Canals Checked
3. They almost helped operate a lockAn early scheme would have used the sculptures’ weight to displace water and lift boats through a lock. Lead engineer Felicity Starr explains that this was abandoned in favour of freestanding sculptures visitors could enter. Ingenia Checked
4. Motorway drivers helped shape the surfaceThe engineers specified a milled stainless-steel finish to limit glare toward the M9. They also proposed a smooth bottom three metres to discourage climbing; Scott accepted it as a better transition from the foundations. Ingenia Checked
5. The fixings came from railway practiceWind loading made vibration resistance essential. The team chose Huck bolts, used in train undercarriages, to secure the skin and help draw its panels against the frame. Ingenia Checked
6. The patchwork is partly an illusionScott’s small models used many individual welded plates. At full scale, larger six-millimetre sheets were laser-profiled to look like groups of smaller pieces. The project required nearly 2,000 fabrication drawings. New Steel Construction Checked

📍 Check-in guide

🗓️ Sightings

1. 20138 Aug

   Photo: steel frame under construction, seen from the M9

2. 201325 Sep

   Photo: cladding being fitted to a head

3. 201327 Nov

   Completion reported

4. 202430 Apr

   Anniversary visit report

5. 202621 Jul

   Park closed by flooding · STV News

6. 20262 Sep

   Council site-visit report

Green stamps mark dated photographs (camera dates from Wikimedia Commons); amber stamps use publication dates. Urban Realm reported completion on 27 November 2013. The Helix’s 2024 account includes an eyewitness description and event photographs. STV News reported on 21 July 2026 that The Kelpies and the Helix were closed to visitors because of flooding at the park; it did not report any damage to the sculptures. The newest dated evidence located is Falkirk Council’s 2 September 2026 site-visit report, describing The Kelpies and their busy surroundings. It supports a reported standing status; it does not give an exact visit date or a newly dated sculpture photograph. Our archive photo’s upload date is not its camera date.

📰 On the record

✅ The facts

Artist / title

Andy Scott; The Kelpies. (Andy Scott) Checked

Dates

Built in 2013; completion publicly reported on 27 November. Unveiled in April 2014. These are separate milestones. (Urban Realm · Scottish Canals) Checked

Scale

Two horse heads, approximately 30 metres (100 feet) high. (Andy Scott) Checked

Materials

Stainless steel with painted mild steel. (Andy Scott) Checked

Commission

Helix Trust, comprising Falkirk Council and Scottish Canals. (New Steel Construction) Checked

Engineering

Atkins and SKM; steelwork and principal contractor S H Structures. (New Steel Construction) Checked

Location

The Helix beside the Forth & Clyde Canal, Falkirk / Grangemouth, Scotland. (Andy Scott · Scottish Canals) Checked

Names

Duke and Baron, after the Clydesdales Scott used as models. (The Scottish Banner) Checked

Status

Standing, reported September 2026. Based on the council’s dated site-visit account, not a fresh camera date. (Falkirk Council) Reported

Our photo

Published in 25 Extraordinary Sculptures on 5 September 2026. Photographer and capture date are not recorded in the source post or attachment metadata. Unconfirmed

🔗 Related

• The original collection: 25 Extraordinary Sculptures on Street Art Utopia.
• Andy Scott’s photographs of The Kelpies.
• Another landmark in steel: Angel of the North by Antony Gormley.

Artwork File · Last checked 12 November 2026 · Certainty labels follow How We Verify Art · All Artwork Files