The Black Heart

The Dorsetarian brings us this recreation of some traditional protective hedge magic- a Bullock's Heart. It's a visually interesting prop and a creepy little piece of history.

At Wyke Regis, Weymouth, there once lived an old woman who was suspected of practising witchcraft, for it was believed she had overlooked a young girl. A gypsy informed the girl's mother to hang a bullock's heart stuffed with pins inside the chimney, which in time would break the spell. The mother did this and when the heart dried out, it fell into the fire and was burnt to a cinder. Later when her daughter recovered, the old witch was seen in a fit of rage claiming that some one had been meddling in her affairs.

Mentioned in the 'Dorset Year Book 1942-3'. The Police station at Frampton, near Dorchester found a Bullock’s heart in their chimney.

‘During the fitting of a new firegrate at the Police Station nearly forty years ago my mason dislodged a bullock’s heart stuffed full of pins’

Can you imagine the reaction when a heart filled with pins came tumbling out? It's a benign bit of folklore, but its appearance lends itself to misinterpretation as something far more ominous.

Dragon Skull

Artists Kim Graham and Douglas Herring bring us this gigantic dragon skull. Despite the immense size of the piece it has an amazing amount of fine detail.

Hidden History

Seabat Studios brings us this fossilized Mer recovered from the Antarctic. Transporting it back to the United States must have required a herculean effort, given that the specimen is the size of a man. It's amazing that "mainstream" science can continue to deny the existence of creatures like fairies, dragons, and merpeople given the extensive fossil record.

Forgotten Fragment

Daniel Heald brings us this this fantastically aged page from an Arabic tome. The mix of textures and tone values gives it a great deal of character.

Making A Shrunken Head

Allen Hopps of Stiltbeast Studios brings us this video tutorial on creating a shrunken head. The finished prop in the video is a little rougher than I would like, but taking some extra time on the structure of the face would significantly improve the final product.

They Dwell Below

Wesley Remory's effort to create an entire tome from scratch continues. His latest pages flesh out the material dealing with the Deep Ones. Browse through his gallery for a look at the growing number of illustrations for the project.

Clarity Amulet

From Krista A. Leemhuis, a stone and carnelian amulet designed to foster clarity and creativity. It reminds me of the spiral-themed designs Brian Froud created for "The Dark Crystal".