straight stroke curve coil Knot interlacing
URVES THAT STRETCH While the strokes that form each letter can add length (above) that curls around to fill the space inside the letter, they can also expand the space inside the the letter. Some letters are irrepressible exhibitionists who can’t resist spreading their wings when they find themselves with a little extra space at the end of a line.
ONTAINED SPACE INSIDE LETTERS‌ Celtic calligraphy creates rounded spaces inside the letters, which Celtic ingenuity finds many ways to fill. In addition to the coils & curves made by the calligraphy pen (previous page), the space inside the letter can be filled with a variety of thinner pen strokes, outlined ornament, dots, solid color, and gold leaf The decorations were traditionally added by an artist other than the scribe, using specialized tools and materials (this page and this page).