About this Piece
Tie clip adorned with Ogham script, as recorded the earliest ancient Irish texts.
Choose from a list of Irish messages below to have inscribed on your piece:
Slainte – Good Health, Wellness
Sonas – Happiness, Luck
Suaimhneas – Peace, Tranquility
Gaisce – At our best, Achievement
Draiocht – Magic
Saoirse – Liberty, Freedom
Misneach – Courage, Hopefulness
Dochas – Trust, Belief
Beatha – Life, Livelihood
Dathuil – Good looking
Aoibhneas – Bliss, Delighted
History of Ogham
Ogham (pronounced 'ohm') was the earliest form of writing in Ireland, existing from the 4th-9th centuries AD. Typically etched into stone or wood, it consists of a series of strokes along a line, where the strokes' quantity, length, and direction determine the letter. Most of the letters correspond to the Roman alphabet, with a few local additions, so in fact it's a translatable cypher rather than a language, read from the bottom-left upwards.
Some historians believe it may have been used as a secret alphabet that Roman Britain wouldn't be able to understand, while others suggest it may have been developed by early Christian communities as a form of shorthand. Most surviving examples are found on stone monuments in southern Ireland, though there are also some inscriptions in the west of Britain too, particularly in Wales.
