Gum Arabic: Tapped from the Acacia, Dried in the Air

Gum arabic is the hardened gum that oozes from gum acacias. Strip small pieces of bark from the branches and a clear mucilage oozes out, hardening in the air into rounded tears. Andrew Ure (1839) notes gum Senegal was gathered in November; the tears dissolve in water and bind watercolours and inks. The picture: raw gum arabic tears of different grades and the ground powder.