• Engraved whisky glass with two racehorses and personalised text
  • Engraved wine glass with an illustration of two kelpies rising in the water
  • Close-up of engraved racehorse detail on stemmed beer glass, highlighting fine linework and hand-finished sandblast engraving on clear glass.
  • Engraved wine decanter with an illustration of a horse with flowing Celtic knotwork

One Motif, Many Meanings: The Horse in Engraved Design

Some motifs appear repeatedly across our work, often in ways that are not immediately obvious.

The horse is one such example.

Over the years it has appeared in commissions inspired by sporting achievement, Scottish folklore, Celtic symbolism and international presentation pieces. Although the subject remains the same, the meaning behind each piece can be very different.

Looking back across a number of collections and commissions reveals how a single motif can carry heritage, memory, identity and symbolism in entirely different ways.

Engraved whisky glass with two racehorses and personalised text

The Horse of Sport

For many people, horses are closely associated with sporting achievement and personal memories.

Our Final Furlong design, featuring two racehorses approaching the finish, was developed as part of the Time & Tide collection. The design reflects the atmosphere and anticipation that surrounds racing, while remaining suitable for engraving on glassware.

For many people, horses are closely associated with sporting achievement, racecourses and memorable days spent at the track. Whether represented through the horse itself or the places connected to the sport, these subjects often carry strong personal associations.

More recently, we were commissioned to create work inspired by an individual racehorse named Ziggys Queen. In cases such as these, the horse becomes more than a sporting subject. It represents a specific animal, a period of ownership, a memorable race or a shared experience.

In both cases, the horse serves as a connection to personal memories rather than simply a decorative image.

Engraved brandy glass with an illustration of two unicorns galloping through the water

The Horse of Legend

Elsewhere, the horse appears in a very different form.

Within our Myths, Legends & Lore collection, horses emerge through figures such as the Kelpie and the Unicorn. These are not animals of sport or ownership but creatures rooted in story, folklore and imagination.

The Kelpie occupies a distinctive place within Scottish tradition, while the Unicorn has long been associated with Scotland itself.

Although visually very different from a racehorse, both continue the same theme. The horse becomes a symbol through which stories are told and cultural identities are expressed.

Engraved wine glass with intricate horse engraving and personalised text

The Horse of Heritage

The horse also appears within traditional decorative forms.

One example is our Celtic knotwork horse design, where the animal is formed through interwoven knotwork rather than naturalistic illustration. Here the emphasis is not on a specific horse but on heritage, continuity and symbolism.

The design draws upon a visual language that is instantly recognisable within Celtic art while remaining suitable for contemporary engraving.

This approach demonstrates how a familiar subject can be interpreted through entirely different artistic traditions.

Faceted Award with corporate logo engraved detail on a dark backround

The Horse Beyond Borders

One of the more unusual commissions involving this motif was a series of presentation awards prepared for an educational delegation visiting China.

The awards incorporated the Celtic knotwork horse design and were commissioned during the Chinese Year of the Horse. The intention was to create a piece that acknowledged both Scottish and Chinese traditions.

The horse provided a shared point of reference between the two cultures. The knotwork reflected Scottish heritage, while the horse itself carried significance within the Chinese zodiac.

A faceted crystal award was selected to complement the design. The angled surfaces introduced changing reflections across the crystal and reinforced the sense of movement within the engraving.

The result was a piece that connected two distinct traditions through a single motif.

A Motif That Continues to Return

What makes the horse interesting is not simply its appearance across different pieces of work, but the variety of meanings it can carry.

It can represent sporting achievement, folklore, heritage, identity or personal memory. The same subject can lead to very different outcomes depending on the story behind the commission.

Looking across these projects, it becomes clear that the horse is less a recurring design and more a recurring theme. Each appearance reflects a different context, while still retaining a connection to the wider traditions and stories that continue to inspire engraved design.

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