World’s oldest-known surviving Scottish tartan has ‘more to tell,’ says researcher

Peter MacDonald had a hunch that the piece of cloth found in the bog decades ago predated the tartan he had seen before.

Now, thanks to dye analysis and radiocarbon testing, a fragment measuring 55-43 centimeters is believed to be the oldest surviving Scottish tartan dating from the 1500s to 1600s, researchers said.

“There is no other surviving piece of tartan from before … the 1700s, the 18th century,” said Peter MacDonald, head of research and collections at the Scottish Tartans Authority, in an interview with As it happens host Nil Koksal.

“It’s a very important piece because it’s so early, because it’s, if you like, a transitional piece that speaks to us about the development of tartan in Scotland.”

Tartan – which is likely red and yellow or tan, with thin green and black or brown stripes but has been colored over time – will go on display as part of the Victoria and Albert Museum Dundee tartan exhibition next month.

“I am delighted that the exhibition encourages further exploration into this part of the plaid and I am very grateful for the support and encouragement of the Scottish Tartans Authority in discovering this historic find,” said James Wylie, the museum’s curator, in a press release announcing it. discovery.

The “rustic” look and loose weave of the fabric were MacDonald’s first clues that tartan had been around since the 18th century. Tartans that survive from the 1700s are of higher quality, he said.

The colors of the tartan are the next sign of his age. Dye analysis confirmed that there were no artificial or imported dyes in the cloth, which dated before 1770.

The subsequent carbon dating – a process that takes 14 weeks to remove the peat staining and involves several acid and alkaline baths – dates from 1500 to 1600.

“Any fabric or clothing from the 16th century that wasn’t from the nobility or gentry is quite rare, and to have this piece that preceded the clan tartan mania of the 19th century, worn or used by common people, is extraordinary,” said Sally Tuckett, senior lecturer of clothing and textile history at the University of Glasgow, by email. Tuckett is also a trustee of the Scottish Tartans Authority.

Preserved with peat

MacDonald said the tartan had been in the authority’s possession since 1995, when it was inherited from a separate and now defunct tartan preservation society.

It was discovered in Glen Affric, in north-west Scotland, 10 years earlier by a man working in forestry. Little is known about its origins, including who found it and where in the glen it was found, MacDonald said.

“It’s quite a bit of peat, the land on top of it, and when they were digging the trench … this piece was dug up,” he said.

“Unless it’s washed and cleaned…it’s in the collection. I know about it, but it’s not visible in daylight.”

Glen Affric peat, which prevents oxygen from damaging the woven fabric, is what keeps the tartan in its exceptional condition for centuries.

“This fragment could be an important piece to the puzzle, which will tell us what dyes were used. [and] where it comes from. It’s even possible to determine what type of wool is used,” Tuckett said.

The side of the fabric suggests that it may have been part of a larger garment, such as a robe.

But who owns it remains a mystery. Clan-specific tartans didn’t appear until the 19th century. And Glen Affric was a transitory route, meaning it might have been owned by a local – or someone passing through.

Based on the colors and patterns, however, MacDonald speculates tartans may have been made for people of higher social status or for special occasions.

“The amount of work involved in producing the color and then creating a pattern like that, nothing is done and then only used effectively for agricultural work,” he said.

Researchers will recreate it

Questions about the tartan’s origins remain – including whether it was deliberately buried – but MacDonald admits much will be left to speculation.

What the findings prove, the researchers say, is that the tartan tradition has continued since at least the 16th century to the present day.

MacDonald’s next step was to recreate the tartan, matching the colors it would have seen centuries ago.

“It’s a story with a lot to tell,” he said.