Decorative handmade, relief carved ceramic Celtic mermaid & seal tile/plaque

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8x8 relief carved Celtic Mermaid and Seal ceramic tile/plaque with a notch in the back for hanging.

Available from http://earthsongtiles.com

In days gone by the creatures of the shoreline that breathed air and maintained an attachment to both water and land were considered sons and daughters of the waves whose presence was most often considered a threat to humans. Ancient British fishermen believed the cry of the curlews as they flew up and down the beach warned of shipwreck for those who ventured out. In the North of France, Cormorants hunched on the rocks were said to be waiting for the souls of fishermen. All along the coasts of Europe, shore folk regarded Gulls with awe and superstition. Some shore creatures partaking of both land and sea were considered much more than just harbingers or embodied ghosts. Beings such as Selkies of the Northern coasts of Scotland, Ireland and Iceland who Assume the form of grey seals basking on the rocky shores by day and walk as men and women by night are shrouded in stories of mortal interaction. In the Shetland Islands they were known as the 'Fin Folk', a race of tribes that gardened the sea bottom and had crystal palaces hidden by seaweed, lit by twinkling phosphorus and gilded with northern lights.