Skip to content

Scottish Poetry Library

Register/Sign in
Shopping Bag Shopping Bag
Bringing people and poems together
  • Home
  • COVID-19
    • Re-Opening FAQ
  • Poetry
    • Poems
    • Poets
    • Our National Poet
    • Podcasts
    • Best Scottish Poems
    • Poetry and Mindfulness
    • Champions 2020
    • Posters
    • Publishers
  • Library
    • Become a borrower
    • Catalogue
    • Collections
    • Ask a librarian
    • Copyright enquiries
  • Learning
    • National Poetry Day 2019
    • National Poetry Day archive
    • SQA set texts
    • Learning resources
    • New to poetry?
    • Advice for poets
  • Events
    • Calendar
    • Exhibitions
    • Venue hire
    • List an event
  • Shop
    • National Poetry Day 2020
    • New Titles
    • Poetry Pamphlet Cards
    • Pocket Poets
    • Scottish Poetry
    • Help
  • About us
    • Our story
    • Our people
    • Our projects
    • Jobs
    • Our building
    • FAQs
    • Find us
  • Support us
    • Become a Friend
    • Donate
    • Easy Fundraising
  • Blog
Shopping BagShopping Bag
Ask a librarian
  • Home
  • >
  • Poetry
  • >
  • Gerda Stevenson
  • >
  • Head of a Young Woman
Donate Donate icon Ask a Librarian Ask a Librarian icon

Head of a Young Woman

Gerda Stevenson

I press my brow to cold glass –
two women, head to head:
your face tilts like a ship’s prow
challenging the wind,
morning sky over the North Sea
in your salt-washed cheeks
and eager, blue-green eyes.
Your hair falls like mine
from a centre parting, though holds
no trace of grey in its peat brown sweep.
Five thousand years between us, and yet
not a moment, it seems – recognition
like that spark you’d know how to strike
from stone. Thought tugs at your mouth’s harbour,
a half-smile about to slip its mooring into laughter.

Your skull lies beside you, mute echo,
shell-white in spotlit stillness – every curve
and crevice mapped by expert minds:
your mask their exquisite calculation,
more real to me than any excavated bone.

Did you sleep, wake, love and weep
in the dark air of honeycomb chambers
built by shores I’ve only glimpsed
from plane and car – my stay too short
and anyway, my timing out of season?
I want to know you, unknown woman,
walk with you the cliffs at Silwick,
tread the paths of Scalloway, hear
your language beat the air again
with skua, scart and arctic tern,
learn your life, those days that stretched
behind your step, and (though you couldn’t guess
their end would come too soon) gave you
such a fearless gaze of hope.


Gerda Stevenson

from Scotia Nova (Luath Press, 2014)

Reproduced by permission of the author

Tags:

connection portraits prehistoric remains Shetland Islands ships and boats women
Share this
Facebook
Twitter
Email

Learn more

Gerda Stevenson

Gerda Stevenson was born and raised in the Scottish Borders, and trained at RADA, London. She is an actor, singer/song-writer, playwright and poet.
More about Gerda Stevenson

Events

Discover poetry events at the Scottish Poetry Library and beyond.
Find forthcoming Events

Online Shop

Browse our range of poetry books, cards and gifts in our online shop.
Shop now
  • Newsletter signup
  • Accessibility
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
Scottish Poetry Library
5 Crichton's Close, Canongate
Edinburgh EH8 8DT
Tel: +44 (0)131 557 2876
© Scottish Poetry Library 2021.
The Scottish Poetry Library is a registered charity (No. SCO23311).
City of Edinburgh logo Green Arts Initiative logo Creative Scotland logo
By leaves we live

The Scottish Poetry Library is staffed weekdays from 10am – 2pm and is providing a limited service including postal loans and Click & Collect. For details, click COVID-19 in the menu bar above. Dismiss