Page 43 - Art First: Helen MacAlister: The Glamour of Backwardness

AF HM catalogue 2023 PRINT.qxp_Layout 1 15/06/2023 17:37 Page 41

Burr–a fir cone

Gaelic bidhearg – red, unctuous, as fir or pine.
Scots barken – to clot, to harden on the surface, as some viscous & semi-liquid mixtures
do on exposure to the air. The word is derived from the bark or outward covering of trees.

Gorse pod
Gorse pods open explosively.

‘The poem opens abruptly, as extempore prayers frequently do, with a conclusive statement;
‘Because there is no refuge . . . –as if it had been preceded by vehement but silent spiritual wrestlings.’ 1

1 Dùthchas Nan Gàidheal: Selected Essays of John MacInnes, p387