The 2nd Project

Just like the "In Europa" project I had a few different ideas before I got to the one I really wanted to do.  I found it quite tricky to pick something because I have so many different interest in general and in the illustration field.  My original idea was to do an illustrated book about the ghost Herne. 

About Herne:  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herne_the_Hunter

"In English folklore, Herne the Hunter is a ghost associated with Windsor Forest and Great Park in the English county of Berkshire. His appearance is notable in the fact that he has antlers upon his head.

Shakespeare as the earliest source merely describes Herne the Hunter as “a spirit” and “sometime a keeper … in Windsor forest” who is seen to “walk round about an oak, with great ragg’d horns” at midnight during winter-time.

This records several aspects of Herne's ghost which is said to have haunted Windsor Forest (covering all of East Berkshire and parts of south Buckinghamshire, northeast Hampshire and northwest Surrey) and specifically the Great Park ever since his death. Further details have entered local folklore from reported sightings , such as those in the 1920s.^[1] He appears antlered, sometimes beneath the tree on which he was hanged, known as "Herne's Oak", but more often riding his horse, accompanied by other wild huntsmen and the captured souls of those he has encountered on his journey. He is thus a phantom of ill omen, particularly for the country and, specifically, the Royal Family. He has a phosphorescent glow and is accompanied by demon hounds, a horned owl and other creatures of the forest.

Both Shakespeare and Samuel Ireland identify Herne as a real historical individual, the latter saying that he died an unholy death of the type that might have given rise to tales of hauntings by his unquiet spirit. The fact that Herne is apparently a purely local figure supports this theory. One possibility is that Herne is supposed to be the ghost of Richard Horne, a yeoman during the reign of Henry VIII who was caught poaching in the wood. This suggestion was first made by James Halliwell-Phillipps, who identified a document listing Horne as a "hunter" who had confessed to poaching.^[17] The earliest edition of The Merry Wives of Windsor spells the name "Horne".^[18] "

I decided against this idea in the end as I have done quite a few books recently and I really wanted to try something else a bit more challenging.  I also felt that this story would be far too close to the themes in the Faun CD album I will also be doing.