Beyond the Barley

Seachad an Eorna

“Once upon a time in a land far away and close to home three fierce girls dreamed around the fire”

Wake up! We must go! 

Beyond the Barley – Seachad an Eòrna is the thought expanding first issue in The WHISKY COMIC series. 

Mil, navigates by the skin of her teeth with Bee under her hat. Speller, poetically weaves alchemical tales. Drumm, steers by the stars over stormy seas and tames wild animals as they chase adventure, influencing global history by the time the ice melts.

#BeyondtheBarley  ~ Seachad an Eòrna navigates the epic odyssey of three heroines bearing barley from the Fertile Crescent to Delphi, onwards to the Northlands, and ultimately West to the salt soaked edges of the Atlantic Ocean.  

Surviving storms, speaking with bees, learning to hunt and reciprocally respecting reindeer, The Girls navigate dangers with friends and foe. Honing and distilling their spirit, they encounter Beira, Goddess of Winter, and other magical folk. Compressing and expanding time, their journey West brings knowledge, and elements of what becomes distilling and the origins of whisky-making in Scotland.

Incorporating recent archaelogical and anthropological evidence, along with Gaelic lore, Beyond the Barley –  Seachad an Eòrna traces the history of the movement of peoples and agricultural production from North to South, challenging the conventional received narrative of the origins of Scotch whisky-making.

Beyond the Barley on IWA LIVE

Check out our live broadcast on You Tube –  IWA LIVE 10  where we share more about the project. Rachel tells her inspiration for the story, Alexis shares her most recent fantastic artwork for the story, and Mel tells why Reciprocity and the book, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer are so important to the project.

Watch illustrator Alexis Bowden draw the girls…