A team of fashion designers from the House of Edgar in Scotland and a tartan historian have recreated a special tartan material that was discovered in a peat bog in Glen Affric in the Highlands about 40 years ago.
- Designer Emma Wilkinson at the House of Edgar worked with historian Peter MacDonald, head of research and collections at the Scottish Tartans Authority, on the project.
The piece of fabric: After testing by the Scottish Tartans' Authority, the piece of fabric was confirmed to be the oldest in the world, dating from around 1500–1600.
The recreation: The original tartan was analysed to figure out what dyes were used to make it the colour it was, and how many woollen threads were used to make the pattern.
- The researchers discovered that green, yellow and red dyes were used, which would have come from wood or indigo to create the green, along with other natural dyes.
The history: Tartan is a patterned cloth consisting of criss-crossed, horizontal, and vertical bands in multiple colours, forming simple or complex rectangular patterns. Tartans originated in woven wool, but are now made in other materials.
- Tartan is particularly associated with Scotland, and Scottish kilts almost always have tartan patterns.
- Today, tartan refers to coloured patterns, though originally did not have to be made up of a pattern at all, as it referred to the type of weave; as late as the 1820s, some tartan cloth was described as "plain coloured ... without pattern".
- Patterned cloth from the Gaelic-speaking Scottish Highlands was called breacan, meaning “many colours.” Over time, the meanings of tartan and breacan were combined to describe a certain type of pattern on a certain type of cloth.
- The Scottish Register of Tartans provides the following summary definition of tartan:
Tartan (the design) is a pattern that comprises two or more different solid-coloured stripes that can be of similar but are usually of differing proportions that repeat in a defined sequence. The sequence of the warp colours (long-ways threads) is repeated in same order and size in the weft (cross-ways threads). The majority of such patterns (or setts) are symmetrical, i.e. the pattern repeats in the same colour order and proportions in every direction from the two pivot points. In the less common asymmetric patterns, the colour sequence repeats in blocks as opposed to around alternating pivots but the size and colour sequence of warp and weft remain the same.
- Manufacture and use of tartan (at least in the Scottish context) is regulated, formally and informally, in three ways: registration (recording of a tartan and its association, if any, with a particular family, organisation, person, event, etc.); legal protection of a tartan as intellectual property (trademark, copyright); and etiquette (socio-cultural norms regarding the use of tartan and Highland dress).
What they said:
I create new tartans every day but this project is truly special — a once in a lifetime opportunity to recreate a piece of history. Tartan is such an iconic piece of Scotland's identity and it has been a true pleasure to see this fabric come back to life to be enjoyed for generations to come.
— Emma Wilkinson
Designer
House of Edgar
It was a privilege to examine the Glen Affric specimen which represents an extraordinary survivor of our textile history. The dye-analysis, Carbon14 dating and a detailed study of the piece, together with a collaboration with House of Edgar, has brought back to life a tartan that allows us to reach back in time and touch history. It is quite special to see the tartan remade as it could have been 500 years ago.
— Peter E MacDonald
Head of research and collections
Scottish Tartans Authority
The Glen Affric tartan took the world by storm when it was revealed prior to the opening of V&A Dundee's Tartan exhibition and continued to be a major draw for many visitors over the past nine months. I am delighted that V&A Dundee could contribute to the preservation of this significant artefact. More so, I am excited its legacy can now live on through the studious efforts of the Scottish Tartans Authority and House of Edgar in reinterpreting its design, for the enjoyment and interest of all who cherish tartan's historic allure.
— James Wylie
Assistant Curator
V&A Dundee
