Machair

By Marianne Kenley

Machair Journey Stone
Image provided by Marianne Kenley

Machair is a Gaelic term for the rare wild flower meadows on the grassy shores of Western Scotland and Ireland. I chose this as it reminds me of our childhood holidays in the 1970s with our cousins in the Western Isles. The journey stone also depicts the fragility of this habitat with the rare blue butterfly and red clover and how environmentally rich our land can be if we take care of it properly. My mother was brought up in Fivepenny, Borgh, on the north west side of Lewis and remembers, as a child, sucking on the red clover like a sweety in her day. They say it grows where the air is purest.

Many thanks to Marianne Kenley for sharing with us the story behind her journey stone, created as part of the Tapestry of the Highlands and Islands.

WHAT IS A JOURNEY STONE?

Prior to the beginning of the stitching of each tapestry panel, each stitcher of the Tapestry of the Highlands and Islands was tasked with telling their interpretation of the 'Spirit of the Highlands and Islands' within a blank outline of a stone. The possibilities were truly endless - is it represented in the land? The people? A historical site? A favourite memory?

In any case, each journey stone represents the connection between of each individual stitcher, their story, and their own sense, or 'spirit', of place. Discover more of the stories behind the journey stones of the Tapestry of the Highlands and Islands here.