New Pictish and Celtic Greeting Cards

ALL OF THESE DESIGNS ARE STRICTLY COPYRIGHT (2023, HATCHBURNCARVE).

Continuing my card designs from the first four that I produced last year, I took some time away from carving to create my next ones. I start my pencil sketches with an idea of the animals that I’d like to draw- some from traditional Pictish carvings (such as the boar and stag), others from my own designs I’ve previously used for slate carvings (such as the squirrel) and often using a large variety of source materials (photographs and anatomical drawings) to sketch the outlines (for example, the buzzard in the cards below).

Once I’ve finalised the outlines, I decide on the Pictish or Celtic designs that will fill the interior spaces. I often make copies of the outlines and try out a number of ideas (also involves much pencil sharpenings and erasers!). I started drawing Celtic and Pictish designs around 40 years ago, so I’m familiar with the majority of Pictish carvings, though I still refer to a few of my books if I’m looking for an idea to fill a shape (or I’m searching for a location-specific design). My two main ‘go-to’ books are ‘Celtic Art: The Methods of Construction’ by George Bain and the ‘Early Christian Monuments of Scotland’ by John Romilly Allen and Joseph Anderson.

Many of the knotwork panels in my drawings pose various problems of interlacing (such as those in the squirrels card) and it’s usually late at night when I’m really tired that the solution will suddenly pop in my head, so I have to draw it on any scrap of paper to hand (usual back of the envelope type stuff!).

The cards are available in my Etsy shop, or from the retailers listed in the post about my first four designs.

‘From Altai to Grampia’ (© 2023, HatchBurnCarve)

‘The Sky Above Meigle’ (© 2023, HatchBurnCarve)

‘The Forest Dwellers’ (© 2023, HatchBurnCarve)

‘Scrofus Dál Riata’ (© 2023, HatchBurnCarve)

One again, these cards have been expertly reproduced by Pennybatch fine art printers. They measure 178 mm x 127 mm (5″ x 7″ landscape) and are blank inside. They’re printed on 100% recycled matt card (300 gsm) with a 100% recycled Eco Kraft Brown envelope (115 gsm).

More information on each of the designs;

From Altai to Grampia (stags)

The stags are based on the Pictish carving that was found at Grantown-on-Spey (now in the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh), but seen through the lens of the twisted animals from the Scythian culture (such as the tattooed Scythian ice-mummies mainly found in the Altai mountains of south-east Siberia).

The Sky Above Meigle (buzzard)

A stylised Pictish/Celtic buzzard drawn as it is landing on an unseen perch. Behind the bird, a circular Celtic knot similar to those found carved on stones at both St Vigeans and Meigle.

The Forest Dwellers (squirrels)

The outline of the squirrels was adapted from one of my slate carving designs. The internal Pictish Crescent and V-Rod symbols were influenced by the carvings found on the ‘Skinnet Stone’. This cross-slab was found built into the wall of a chapel near Thurso and is now housed in the North Coast Visitor Centre.

Scrofus Dál Riata (boar)

The boar was adapted from carvings found on four Class I Pictish stones and at Dunadd fort in Kilmartin Glen. This site is believed to have been the capital of the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata. I have carved this boar around a hundred times and in doing so, I quickly became aware of the suggestion of an axe head in the line that extends from the trailing front leg. I expanded this idea/insight and ‘Scrofus Dál Riata’ includes a full bronze age socketed axe head within the body of the boar.
Surrounding the boar are more simplified axe heads from the carvings found at Nether Largie north cairn and Ri Cruin cairn, both in Kilmartin Glen.

Celtic, Pictish and Rock Art Greeting Cards

ALL OF THESE DESIGNS ARE STRICTLY COPYRIGHT (2022, HATCHBURNCARVE).

Another episode of covid earlier this year found me unable to do much in the way of carving or practical work. However, I was keen to get back to drawing purely for pleasure and that was the ideal opportunity. I’ve amassed a whole box file and a number of drawing pads full of my own designs over the years, some of which I have used to carve slate and stone (and anyone who keeps up to date with my work may recognise some of the outlines of these animals).

‘Lepus Celestine’ (© 2022, HatchBurnCarve)

I’ve drawn four designs to date and plan to create a total of 12 Pictish/Celtic animals. Each design is hand drawn using Mircon, Uni-Pin and Pilot fine-liner drawing pens, and the cards have been beautifully reproduced by Pennybatch fine art printers based in Somerset. The cards measure 178 mm wide x 127 mm high (5″ x 7″ landscape) and are blank inside. They’re printed on 100% recycled matt card (300 gsm) with a 100% recycled Eco Kraft Brown envelope (115 gsm) wrapped in a cellophane bag.

‘Canis Major’ (© 2022, HatchBurnCarve)

‘Kellas Grampia’ (© 2022, HatchBurnCarve)

‘Torrs Horse’ (© 2022, HatchBurnCarve)

These are available to buy from my Etsy shop- just follow this link. They’re also currently available from the following shops/museums (with more outlets planned);

• The Hub On The High Street (Innerleithen)
• Trimontium Museum (Melrose)
• Inverness Museum and Art Gallery
• North Coast Visitor Centre (Thurso)
• Dumfries Museum
• The Robert Burns Centre (Dumfries)
• Art and Vintage (Abbeyhill, Edinburgh)
• The Highland Folk Museum (Newtonmore)
• Tarbat Discovery Centre (Portmahomack)
• West Highland Museum (Fort William)
• The Scottish Crannog Centre (Perthshire)
• Earth Spirit (Hebden Bridge)
• Castell Henllys Iron Age Village (Meline, Pembrokeshire)
• Celtic Gold (Peel, Isle of Man)

Detailed information on each of the designs;

Lepus Celestine (hare)

The outline of the hare was adapted from an original slate carving design I had drawn and the loose, free-flowing, internal design is influenced by Celtic and Pictish art. The hare leaps over cup-and-ring marks/rock art based on the carvings found at Cairnbaan in Kilmartin Glen, Argyll.

Canis Major (hound)

The outline of the hound was adapted from an original slate carving design I had drawn and the internal design is influenced by Pictish spirals, a Celtic triskelion and knot. Above the hound hangs the constellation of Canis Major reinterpreted as cup-and-ring marks/rock art. Below the hound sits the Canis Minor constellation as rock art.

Kellas Grampia (cat)

The outline of this cat was based on a slate memorial that I made earlier this year. The free-flowing internal design is based on Celtic triquetras, triskelions and Pictish spirals. The Kellas Cat was a Scottish mythological animal and remained so until a specimen was found in 1984. A hybrid between a domestic cat and the Scottish Wildcat (Felis silvestris grampia), it’s thought that a carving on the Class II Pictish stone found at Golspie may represent a Kellas Cat.

Torrs Horse

The outline of the horse was adapted from an original slate carving design I had drawn and the internal design is influenced by the Iron Age pony cap found at Torrs, near Castle Douglas in Dumfries and Galloway. Dating to around 250 BC, the elaborate decoration on this bronze chamfron has been described as one of the most important pieces of Iron Age art ever found in Britain. The design also includes Celtic knotwork, triquetras and triskelions.