An early Proscription era tartan?

**figheadair** · 25th October 16, 10:16 AM

A lady dropped by the STA office recently with a family plaid that is initialled and dated. At 1748 the date is very early for a such a magnificent example. The tightly woven plaid is almost pristine and the colours so vibrant.

This piece will be the subject of a future paper.

**JasonMc** · 25th October 16, 11:06 AM

Beautiful tartan, and fits well with the bright reds shown in some of the period paintings. Did the owner provide an opinion on where they think it came from (geography, clan, city, etc) or would you rather wait for confirmation and unveiling with the full paper?

**Orvis** · 25th October 16, 03:07 PM

That is a magnificent plaid! What a piece of luck that the owner brought it to the STA. It makes one wonder what other pieces are lurking out there waiting to be discovered.

The photo appears to show selvedge marks on each edge, which I presume are herringbone weave. The red ground color must have made this an expensive piece. The apparent mode of stitching at the join is also interesting. I'll look forward to your paper, Peter!

**figheadair** · 25th October 16, 03:37 PM

Originally Posted by JasonMc

Beautiful tartan, and fits well with the bright reds shown in some of the period paintings. Did the owner provide an opinion on where they think it came from (geography, clan, city, etc) or would you rather wait for confirmation and unveiling with the full paper?

I known where the name, date and place of birth of the original owner; plus when 9(1748) and to whom they were married but not yet where or where they lived thereafter. Hopefully that will all become a little clearer as I work through the paper.

**figheadair** · 25th October 16, 03:43 PM

Originally Posted by Orvis

That is a magnificent plaid! What a piece of luck that the owner brought it to the STA. It makes one wonder what other pieces are lurking out there waiting to be discovered.

The photo appears to show selvedge marks on each edge, which I presume are herringbone weave. The red ground color must have made this an expensive piece. The apparent mode of stitching at the join is also interesting. I'll look forward to your paper, Peter!

Gerry, you're correct, this would have been an exspensive piece with so much scarlet. It also has rose and pink squares, plus two shades of blue, green, black, brown and white. Nine colours makes it a very complex piece.

There is not selvedge mark; the cloth was woven as a balanced warp with four half setts and the two halves whip stitch to join them. Much more detail to follow in due course.