Illuminated E Initial Tattoo with Celtic Design sgian dubh The ancient Scottish Inverurie stone

The ancient Scottish Inverurie stone carving of a prancing horse is the starting point for this unique pattern

taken from the opening page folio 29r of the Saint Matthew's Gospel in the 9th century illuminated manuscript

The triune god within the tree is seen in records as early as the settlement of the Indus basin at Harappa and Mohenjo Daro from ancient Sumer ca 2000 BCE

brave as the knight himself

Illuminated E Initial Tattoo with Celtic Design sgian dubh The ancient Scottish Inverurie stoneThe illuminated text pages in the Book of Kells (c. 800ce) frequently featured one magnificently complex letter beginning a Bible passage. This is the letter E at the start of folio 183r. It features the head of a lion and three snakes, as well as a full body of a lioness, Celtic knot work, and Pictish key patterns. A very ambitious tattoo.