A border bestiary

In the margins

Above and below every scene runs a border of beasts, birds, fish and fables. On the original tapestry these margins are where the embroiderers played. Susanne Thea kept them and filled them with creatures of her own.

Drawn line by line

Every creature was drawn into the wax ground with a needle, one line at a time. As you scroll, a border draws itself across the page.

The lower border of The bowsmith: a procession of animals drawn in fine etched line
Lower border, The bowsmith0%

Specimens

Each border belongs to a scene. Tap one to bring up the picture it runs beneath. Some echo what happens above them: archers and the fallen in the battle prints, fish under the boats, a crowd under the coronation.

As the site’s ornament

Used sparingly, the borders could do the jobs that ornament usually does on a site: dividers, loading states, hover marks and empty states. It would all come from her hand rather than a stock icon set.

Navigation

A border underlines the page you are on

Loading

Animals walk by while a print loads

Loading plate 37 of 90…
Buttons

Creatures appear on hover

Empty state

Page not found

404

This plate hasn’t been printed yet.

In the battle scenes of the original, the lower border fills with archers, the dead and their stripped armour. Her battle prints do the same.