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This splendid book
belongs to a class of works which must, from their cost, be of rare
appearance anywhere, and which are rare indeed in Scotland. It is a book
for the rich and the aristocratical; or for what are called “historical
families.” It belongs as much to the decorative arts as to literature;
though national costume certainly falls within the province of the
literary antiquary. The author or editor of this unique publication must
be Well known in Scotland and the North of England, especially to the
Roman Catholic and the old Jacobite families, or those who once were
Jacobites. The phrase, publication, is, however, hardly applicable to a
work of which there were only forty copies for sale; and of which it may
soon be difficult to obtain even a sight. We therefore seize the first
opportunity to describe to our clan-Utah readers the Book of Clans and
Tartans.
In the possession of Mr. John Sobieski Stuart, there is an old MS.
black-letter quarto, of the sixteenth century, containing thirty-four
pages of Vellum, illuminated with small plain capitals, such as the
ordinary initials of inferior missals. In this Volume, the tartans of
each of the great feudal families of Scotland are minutely described. It
was at one time in the possession of John Lesley Bishop of Ross', but of
the author, save that he would appear to have been a Sir Richard
Urquhart, —and even that is indistinctly intimated,—nothing whatever is
known. The MS. volume was deposited, no one can tell when, in the
library of the Scots College at Douay, along with many other papers
belonging to the Bishop. When Prince Charles Edward visited that
seminary, some time between 1749 and 1754, he, according to Mr. Stuart,
obtained from the Fathers this singular relic among many other papers.
How or when it came into his own possession, or of its history since
1754, we do not learn. The MS. has been collated by Mr. Stuart, with the
transcript of another copy stated to be in the library of the Monastery
of St. Augustine in Cadiz, which bears internal evidence of having once
belonged to “ane honerabil man, Maister James Dunbare, w1in ye burg of
Inner nesse,” and which, it is imagined, may, through the hands of some
refugee or Irish priest, have passed into Spain. Between these copies
there exist merely the slight differences and omissions which arise from
inaccuracy in copying, or clerical errors; but there is a third copy
very much vitiated and mutilated, that is also in the possession of Mr.
Stuart, of which the history is even more romantic than that of the
other copies; the fathers and monks of the religious houses of the
Continent being much more likely to prove faithful custodiers of rare
MSS. than old illiterate Highlanders, transferred from the mountains to
city lanes. This last “was obtained from an old Highlander named John
Ross, one of the last of the sword-players, who may yet be remembered by
those who recollect the porters of Edinburgh twenty years ago.” It is
written negligently and inaccurately, and differs in several particulars
from the MS. of the Bishop of Ross.
It is as difficult to fix the date as the authorship of the Vestiarium
Scoticum, though it is presumed by Mr. Stuart to be not later than the
reign of James III. of Scotland, and, consequently, long prior to the
time when it could have fallen into the hands of the learned and loyal
John Lesley, the adherent and historian of Queen Mary, who was somewhat
contemptuous of “Hieland vanities," and of “compilin ane buik upon the
stripis and colouris of a common garment,” though he has fortunately
pm-served this curious volume. It contains a roll of the clans, of date
1571, which is consequently very long subsequent to what Mr. Stuart
imagines the date of the original document. Having given this roll which
must be of interest to all feudal families, and to all who boast clan
blood, Mr. Stuart proceeds with his Introduction, which, together with
the numerous foot-notes, fills 66 quarto pages with antiquarian
dissertation upon the tartan which is shown to be of very ancient date,
and which in all probability is nearly as old as the art of weaving
cloth of different colours, the chequer or crossstripe being quite as
easily invented as the simple stripe. Indeed no sort of cloth for
garments has been more generally diffused over the civilized globe than
chequered cloth or tartan, (the breacan of the Highlander,) and that
from periods of the highest antiquity down to our own age. From the
Highlanders of Scotland to the mountaineers of Burmah, from the Calmncs
of the north to the Biscayans of the south,” may be found variegated or
parti-coloured garments, together with other relics and usages of a
common family, now very widely dispersed. The antiquity and universality
of tartan, or of chequered or parti-coloured garments, among different
nations, is abundantly demonstrated; but until the eighth century no
mention is, we are told, made of it in oral Gaelic poetry, or by
manuscripts in the Gaelic language, though the omission is us proof of
its non-existence. Tartan or Breacm is now, however, chiefly of interest
from the exclusive appropriation of different and fixed patterns or
setts by the leading clan families of the Highlands, and as it now
appears from the Vestiarium Scoticum, by those of the Lowlands also, who
were of any note previous to the 16th century. Indeed the leading object
of the work is to prove, that to each of these families a particular
sett or pattern was exclusively appropriated, by which every man of the
tribe could be recognised from his plaid, as readily as from his surname
or the badge or ensign of his clan. Its splendid illustrations are embla-zonings
of these tartans in every brilliant rainbow dye. The tartans so
enamelled are in as great variety as the number of the great families,
of whom each, according to the Vestiarium Scoticum, had a pattern of
their own. There are between seventy and eighty specimens; forty-two
Highland, and thirty-one Lowland and Border families being enumerated as
each having its own tartan. These, taken alphabetically, are of
Highlanders:—
Bachanan, Cameron, Campbell, Chisholm, Clanranald, Farqubarson, Fraser,
Grant, Gun, Lamont, MacArthur, MacDonald of the Isles, MacDougall,
MacDuff, Mac-Farlane, MacGrigor, Macintosh, MacIntyre, MacKay, MacKenzie,
MacKinnon, MacLauchlan, MacLean, MacLeod, MacNab, MacNeill, MacPherson,
MacQueen, Menzies, Monro, Robertson, Ross, Prince of Rothesay, The Royal
Stuart, Sutherland.
The Lowland and Border Clans who had tartans were, the Armstrong,
Barclay, Brodie, Bruce, Col quhonn, Com yn, Cunningham, Cranstoun,
Crawford, Douglas, Drummond, Dunbar, Dundas, Erskine, Forbes, Gordon,
Graham, Hamilton, Hay, Home, Johnston, Kerr, Lauder, Leslie, Lindsay,
Maxwell, Montgomery, Murray, Ogilvie, Oliphant, Ramsay, Rose, Ruthven,
Scott, Seton, Sinclair, Urquhart, Wallace, Wemyss.
The peculiar tartan of each of those families is accurately described in
the Vestiarium, otherwise "ycleped the garderope of Scotlande,” and for
the following weighty reasons :—
For sameikle as in thir pres1 tymes bene sene dyuers vnevthe chavnges in
tbe avid scottysche fassoune, and men do nowe effect foreigne and
stravnge fantasyes, rad-der nor sic holsom vse and ordyr as cvmethe of
yr ain native gvise, and hes ben vsit be owr forbeiris yn the anlde tyme,
for nowe all do tak pryd to bupke y™ yn heich cromit hattis, frensche
claukis, Englische hades, lang pykit schnne, and vdder syk lyk vncovthe
braneries, the quhilk wes vnknawen till owr antecessories of gude fiunen
quha wes conteintit to gang w* ane bonnette of Kelsheu-blewe, and ain
mantil or playde lyk as afford tym wes vsit be ther faderis begone, w*
ane payr of rouch rowlyns, or bemands of harteshyd, as wes moche vsit be
owr vmqnhile lorde and sonraine King James of nobil meuorye ; for he had
euer, besyd thai of hys awin oonlouris, twa or thre pladia of diners
kyndes in hys gnarderobe, quhilk he vsit yn his iornayes quhen that he
wald not be knawen openlye ; and for that sic fassovns be not of vse in
vther cvntryes nor foraine reaulmes, for thir cawsis 1 bane taken on
hande to compil, accordand to my prir habylitye, a trews ensample off
alle, or tbe maiet parte, the pryncyppul tartanis of Scotlonde, sic as 1
maye discerne yra, baitbe for the trewe witting and pleasaunce of alle
cvriovs straungeris, and to y® ende y* gif paravannture, quhilk God
forbyd, that herefter ovr eomtrye fiassoune sail alle to fayl and
baillilie cvm to sooht, ms heth bene sene w* monie vtharis of mair and
greater renome and puiasannoe ; as to wyt, y® nobyll rronlmin of
Babyloun, Troie, and Jewerie, Egyptia, Car-tegen, and of lyk wyse
gloriovs and ymperiall Rom, qnhilk wet svmtym qwene and ladye of alle
the wordle; Mit, nenerthelesse, bathe her anticke and hethen fassovn all
to perrischift owt of vse and mynd throuch y* mycht of ovr Lorde and
halye crosse, quhilk heth put doune theyr idollis lyk as wes y® dewil D&goune
and the fenlie dragonne of Kinge Cyrvg, w* y® fowle ymage bel, w*
shidrie sick pagovoe herreseye ; quharfor, if so be befol on lyk sort
that ovr gudlye oys sail be decayit and cvm to nocht, y‘ then alle men
may knawe the anlde gvyse of theyr forberis ; for yn sae moehe as we
that be in thir daiss he cvriovse and desyrons to seke efter and
dys-eoner the fkmons gestis of ovr antecessoris in theyr avid tym of
renowme, swa 3m lyk manners I doubt not that thai qnhilk sail cvm efthr
vs, sail be careful to knawe owr manor of gyse and vdder manneris, to
the end yt thai maye vnderstonde yn quhat we be lyk vnto y^luis, and
alsna qnharin we be dyiiers from, and do vnlyk ntil y*.
The manner of forming a the settis or stryppis” is next described, and
also the different chequers proper for hoes and trews, which admitted of
great variety; every man being allowed, in those inferior articles, to
follow his own convenience or fancy* though the plaid, the w&r-garbs,
the garments of honour, were not to be tampered with. The women were,
however, allowed unlimited license in tbe patterns of their plaids and
dresses. Some of the setts, as they are blazoned in this work, and upon
the authority of the Vestiarium, differ materially from the tartans
usually recognised under the respective clan names. The tartans given
here as those of the M&ckays, the Mackenzies, the Grants, and the
Macgregors, for example, are not those usually recognised as the tartans
of those clans. We, however, only speak to the best of our recollection,
an we have not lately visited a Clan Tartan Warehouse to refresh memory
with a sight of thoee brilliant fabrics.
The Vestiarium Scoticum must henceforth be the book of authority, the
final arbiter, in this important question with manufacturers as well as
clansmen ; and we suspect that its fiat will reduce many pretty
patterns, with clan names, to the anomalous list of fancy or mongrel
tartans. Many of the tartans in Mr. Stuart's work must be quite new,
even to those who have, from commercial reasons, of late paid
considerable attention to this fashionable and favourite manufacture ;
such are those of the Cranstouns, the Lauders, the Brodies, the Ramsays,
and so forth. The description of one pattern from the Vestiarium w ill
give a perfect idea of the whole; though, of course, the description is
short or lengthened according to the simplicity or intricacy of the
sett. Thus, the tartan of “the Macifarlan of ye Arroquhar,” is described
in half a dozen words. It “hath thre stryppis quhite, vpon aneblak fyeld
f while the tartan of “MakDonnald of ye Ylis," and of the Clan Ranald,
require this long explanation
MakDonnald op y* Ylis, qnhilk is tbe chiefest and m&ist nobil of alle
elanned names, howbeit the clann Grigor and y* Clan chattane of anlde
sail be consawit of lyk avncient stocke ; yet, iu respect of ponste and
dig-nitie, we call none lyk vnto hym : be beth ane blue set, and ane
greine sett, quharoff y* blew sett hathe twa greit panes of blak, ane
vpon y® ylk bordure y'off and y*by two gross sprangia of y® samen, and
in y® mydnard of y® ylk gren sett ane stryp quhite, the maist pairt of
half ane finger breid, and yn y• mydward of y® blew ane gross spraing
reidd.
The clan Raynald, ye second hovse of y® Clandonald. howbeit y®be y% say
he svld be y® fyrst off rycht, hot y Donald mak lan mak Angus gat y*
herytage, contrar to y® mindis of ye men of y® Yllis: he hath ane sett
of blewe and ane sett of grene, quharoff y® blewe sett hath vpon y® ylk
syd ane blak stryp, and yrby vpon y® ynward syd yroff ane sprainge
scarlatt, and yn y' inyddest of y* blewe be ither tua sprangia of ye
sameu a littel asonder, as of fovrty tbreidis betuix ym or thairby, and
the greine sette hath ane quhite spraing, and be y® ylk syd ypoff twa of
redd, ain greiter and ane less, qubarof y® greiter sail bo vtterward,
and hathe avghte threidis, and y® ynnerward hath fovr threidis, and
betnix y® reidd and the qohite sallbe y* space of aughteen threidis or
thairbye, and vtheris yr be of y* famylyes of ye cl&nn-donald, lyk as
tbe clan-haistein in Sky, makconel of y® glennis, makiane of
ardnamurackane, and vtheris yl have y® samen w* diners smal dinersities,
of y® quhilk I spoke not yn respect I knawe yhaim not parfkictly.
Many of these tartans are truly beautiful; though no doubt they may owe
part of their splendour to the &rti6t or illuminator. But the style in
which they are executed, and their dazzling effect, must be seen to be
comprehended. We do not pretend to describe by words either the process
of painting them, or to give any idea of the brilliant results. One may
easily conceive the idea of a massy imperial quarto volume, very
beautifully printed upon drawing paper, and magnificently bound, gilt,
and emblazoned with the royal arms; but the illustrations, the
illuminations, the tartans, are the novel feature of the work; and
without the actual vivid representations of these beautiful and delicate
fabrics be seen, glowing in all the colours of the rainbow, no adequate
idea of the work can be formed. We would therefore advise all who have
the power of inspection not to rest content with description, but to
procure at least a sight of the original work.
The Vestiarium describes the badges of the different Highland clans,
which also differ, in some instances, from those which have hitherto
been received; and it gives the ensigns of several Lowland and Border
families, which, we presume, will be quite as new to many of the
descendants of these families as are their tartans. The badge of Bruce
is rosemary; of Lyndsay, rue; of Hamilton, bay; Dandas, bilberry; and so
forth. On these botanical badges Mr. Stuart has a long and curious note.
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