Ravens & Skulls

A raven perched on a skull, drawn in India ink. Two shapes, and somehow the whole history of gothic art. A raven poster or a skull print isn't morbid when it's done well; it's a stylish reminder that time is short, and one of the easiest ways to bring black-and-white drama into a room.

Memento mori, from canvas to wall

'Remember that you will die.' The Latin phrase memento mori shaped an entire genre of painting, the vanitas. Seventeenth-century Dutch artists arranged skulls, hourglasses, guttering candles, wilting flowers and books on a table, a quiet nudge to value what matters. On stage, Hamlet holding Yorick's skull ('Alas, poor Yorick!') became one of the most recognisable images in theatre.

The raven carries even more stories. In Norse myth, Odin's two ravens, Huginn and Muninn, stand for thought and memory. At the Tower of London, legend says the kingdom will fall if the ravens ever leave. Classical Arabic poetry has its ghurab al-bayn, the raven of parting that signals lovers separating. And then there's Edgar Allan Poe, whose bird says only 'Nevermore'.

Styling a raven and skull poster

Engraving-style art is the sweet spot: fine cross-hatching, deep blacks, warm off-white backgrounds. It sits happily next to almost anything, from bare plaster to dark wood.

• Wingspan wall set: spread one raven with open wings across three posters, 3 cm apart.
• Modern vanitas: a skull and an hourglass print side by side above a desk.
• Heavier edge: mix in art from the Metal category, which shares the same love of bone and black ink.

Find more in the Gothic collection, printed in Tunisia and delivered to all 24 governorates.