The Celtic and Roman goddess Epona, whose name translates from Gaulish as ‘Great Mare’, was a guardian of horses, asses and mules. Her namesake, Epona, the horse, is a recurring character in the ‘Legend of Zelda’ video game series, chiefly developed and published by Nintendo. Indeed, she has become one of the most recognisable and popular equines in interactive entertainment.
A silver bay mare with a white mane and tail and four white socks, Epona first appears as a foal in the fifth main instalment of the series, ‘ The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’, on Lon Lon Ranch. She is cared for by Malon, the daughter of the ranch owner, Talon, who teaches the main protagonist, Link, ‘Epona’s Song’ when he is still a child. As an adult, Link summons Epona by playing the melody on an ocarina and wins ownership of her by racing against ranch employee Ingo.
Having made their escape from the Lon Lon Ranch, Link can summon Epona to any practicable outdoor location by playing the refrain on his ocarina. Thus, Epona provides a useful, and enjoyable, means of traversing the central setting for the series, fictional kingdom of Hyrule, which is too vast to explore on foot, and meeting the other characters.
As a trusty steed and loyal companion of Link, Epona, along with her accompanying theme, appears, in various iterations, in further instalments of the series, including ‘Majora’s Mask’, ‘The Minish Cap’, ‘Twilight Princess’, ‘Breath of the Wild’ and ‘Tears of the Kingdom’. In ‘Twilight Princess’, Link can call her by whistling on horseshoe-shaped horse grass and later, a similarly-shaped woodwind instrument, known as the Horse Call, or Ilia’s Charm, which is gifted to him by Impaz, an elderly woman who is the sole remaining inhabitant of the Hidden Village.
Throughout the series, each of the multiple versions of Epona is similar, but by no means identical, to the last. In ‘Ocarina of Time’, for example, she has a more slender, athletic build and an energetic and enthusiastic personality. In ‘Twilight Princess’, befitting the passage of time, she has become a heavier, more powerful draft horse, capable of carrying an adult Link and his possessions, and more ‘business-like’ in temperament.