Eric Ravilious was a successful designer in many media, but in later life concentrated increasingly on watercolours. His favourite themes were landscapes and rural interiors, often featuring the downland and coast of southern England. He made several paintings of the chalk hill figures. The Wilmington Giant, or the Long Man of Wilmington, cut into the turf of the northern slope of the downs near Eastbourne, is the subject of fierce controversy. Some say it is of great antiquity, and represents a Celtic iron age god, similar to the Roman god Janus, who stands at the doorway to the celestial year. However, recent excavations at the foot of the hill suggest a much more recent date in the late 16th or early 17th century. The purpose of the gigantic figure is still a complete mystery.