This comment , from somebody who had actually worked on the excavation , was posted recently on Britarch and may be of interest .

Hi,

Can I correct one thing, the Long Man was not re-cut in the 19th century, as
it was never 'cut' in the first place. Our excavations confirmed that it had
never been a chalk-cut figure, and had been laid out in bricks from its
construction in the 16th century.

During one of its numerous re-linings, this one being at the end of the 19th
century, an experiment was carried out to see if it could be cut into the
chalk. This resulted in a cut at the top of the head (re-located in our
excavation). However, the experiment failed and it was once again laid out
in bricks.

Hope this clarifies the popular misconception that the Long Man is a chalk
cut hill figure. A report on our excavations will be forthcoming in Sussex
Archaeological Collections in due course, and interim reports have appeared
in the SAS newsletter.

Chris Butler