What Is Ogham Script? The Story Behind Our Engravings

If you've bought or browsed our slate gifts before, you've probably noticed a run of short vertical and diagonal lines etched along the edge of many pieces. That's Ogham — one of the earliest known forms of written Irish, and one of the details we get asked about most.

Ogham dates back to around the 4th century and was originally carved into standing stones across Ireland, often to mark territory or commemorate a name. Each letter is represented by a group of lines cut across a central stem line, which made it well suited to being carved into stone and wood — and, centuries later, into slate.

We use Ogham on many of our pieces not as decoration, but as a way of tying a modern, personal gift back to something genuinely old and Irish. A coaster engraved with “Grá” (love) or “Sláinte” (health) in Ogham — both part of our Celtic Whisper coaster set — carries that word in two forms at once: the modern Irish spelling, and the ancient script it descended from. You'll find the same idea across our wider Celtic & Irish Designs collection.

It's a detail that tends to mean the most to people with an Irish connection who live outside Ireland — we hear from a lot of customers buying gifts for family abroad who want to send home something that feels rooted rather than generic. If you'd like a specific word or name engraved in Ogham that isn't already in the shop, get in touch through our Custom Order page and we'll see what we can do.