A Bull in Spain

This article was first published on 19/11/2004

I just came back from my two-weeks travelling through Spain. Here is a picture I took on a mountain top in Andalusia.

Here is a little history about these famous bulls :

Anyone who travels around Spain cannot help but see the giant black bulls which stand on the hill tops. These bulls are the trademark of a famous Spanish company producing brandy and sherry, Osborne. The bulls, which originally varied in size, were placed near roads by the Osbourne company and carried advertising messages for their products.

Over a period of time they became accepted as a symbol of Spain to such a degree that they were taken over by the Government for this purpose. They are now maintained by the governement, the advertising messages have been removed (not always succcesfully - just look closely at the picture) and their size has been standardised at around 10 meters in height. This is about the height of a three storey house and, standing on hilltops as they do, are visible for miles around