THE LORDSHIP & BARONY OF KILMARNOCK
 TARTAN - SCOTLAND'S NATIONAL TEXTILE Tartan is a beguiling cloth which has developed from native culture to the present fantastic proliferation. It has become an international phenomenon through romantic invention, and the association with many families and clans is utterly spurious. The Scottish Register of Tartans Bill received Royal Assent on 26 November 2008, to become a definitive reference and registration source for tartans. It is essentially electronic, as is all access to it, and it will become the repository of the existing tartans in Scotland. The website of the Scottish Register of Tartans is here. The Ayrshire District tartan WR436 is shown at right. 'Tartans of Scotland' explains the design by Dr. Philip Smith FSTS, of Pa, USA thus: Gold represents the rising sun, green the land, brown the coastline, blue the sea, and red the setting sun. This Ayrshire tartan is categorised as 'District' and intended for anyone with connections in the districts of Kyle, Cunningham and Inverclyde. The Register entry can be seen here and the Scottish Tartans Authority entry here. A currently disputed Ayrshire #2 tartan WR2562 is shown at right. The design is by David McGill of McGill Co. According to International Tartans, 'Green represents the predominantly rural landscape of the east and south, and gold the rich farmland which makes the name of Ayrshire synonymous with agriculture. Blue represents the Irish Sea which forms its western boundary. Black the rich coal seams which fuelled its many industries. Pale blue represents the two districts of Kyle and Cunninghame, and purple the third district of Carrick, birthplace of King Robert the Bruce, which together make up the County of Ayrshire.' Note that use requires the designer's consent. The Register entry is here and the Scottish Tartans Authority entry is here. The Boyd tartan (WR1819) shown here was based on the Hay and the Stuart of Bute tartans and registered with the Scottish Tartans Society in 1956. The Register particulars can be seen here. Boyd #2 tartan STA1820 was designed for Lord Kilmarnock in 1956. The Register entry is here and the Scottish Tartans Authority entry here. The lands, Lordship & Barony of Kilmarnock were forfeited in 1746 and recovered by James, Lord Boyd, and later sold to William Cunningham, the twelfth Earl of Glencairn. The Cunningham tartan shown here is was first recorded in the inauthentic Vestiarium Scoticum (at #49). As a clan tartan it is the 4644 Scottish Tartans Authority entry here. Four other Cunningham tartans are listed on the Scottish Tartans World Register here, ie. the similar WR11117, the Dress Clan WR563, the Burgundy Dress Clan WR1873 and the Hunting Clan tartan WR1972. There are ten Cunningham tartans listed on the Scottish Register of Tartans, including several 'dance' designs. They can all be seen here. A tartan shown at right is registered to the Convention of the Baronage of Scotland. This is No.2348 on the Scottish Tartans World Register here and is a Hebridean tartan of the Bute collection. The details can be seen on the Register website here, and No.2348 (otherwise STA 4425) is on the Scottish Tartans Authority website here. The Convention has an unidentified second tartan, a No.3048 on the Register as 'Convention #2'. It can be seen here. Scotweb lists it as 'Baronage Modern Tartan' here. Next is the Masonic tartan of the Grand Lodge of Scotland. This tartan is No.2924 on the Scottish Tartans World Register here where it is described as 'a general Masonic tartan for those of the Scottish Rite'. It is also STA 5776, and can be seen on the Register here. Note that the entry on the Scottish Register of Tartans here states that it is not a general Masonic tartan, and masons in other parts of the world wishing to obtain this tartan must, in the first instance, contact the Curator of the Grand Lodge of Scotland Museum. It is shown on the Scottish Tartans Authority website here. Some visitors here from the USA may be unaware that in 2003 the Grand Lodge of Utah had sponsored a 'universal' masonic tartan to represent Freemasonry in Utah and for use by masons worldwide. Shown right, it is recorded as STA6245 on the Register here and on the Scottish Tartans Authority website here. The colours were chosen to represent all of the various Masonic organizations which includes the Blue Lodge, the Scottish Rite, the York Rite, Order of the Eastern Star etc. It is shown right. The Grand Lodge of Utah webpage is here. The tartan of the Scottish Knights Templar of OSMTH International shown here was ratified and approved by the Grand Conclave of Militi Scotia S.M.O.J in Perth in 1998. It is tartan No.560 on the Scottish Tartans World Register here, and listed with the Scottish Tartans Authority in detail here. The Ayre family tartan shown was designed at the Peter MacDonald Design Studio in Crieff, Perthshire, and is recorded as No.6305 on the Register here and on the Scottish Tartans Authority website here. The colours reflect those of the Baron's armorial bearings. The certified half sett/ full pivots: Y/6 OG28 K18 R4 K18 RB36 K6 W/2 This tartan is available in 11oz and 16oz new wool and silk from the Scotweb network. The weaver is D.C.Dalgliesh Ltd (Weavers), Dunsdale Mill, Selkirk, Scotland TD7 5EB  Index Registration Certificate from the Scottish Tartan Authority THE KIRKIN' OF THE TARTAN LEGEND There are many who believe (without any supporting evidence) that a 'Blessing of the Tartans' was practiced here in Scotland during the Proscription of 1746 when items of tartan clothing were forbidden following the fall of Bonnie Prince Charlie. If only! - any surviving heirloom specimens of tartan would be invaluable to historians who have very little knowledge of the tartans of that era. John Prebble in 'Culloden' asserts "When Proscription was lifted in 1782 there was no enthusiastic return to the tartan or the kilt". It is known that the ceremony was created in 1941 at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington DC by Pastor Dr. Peter Marshall. The story of Dr.Marshall written by his wife Catherine Marshall makes no mention at all of the ceremony he is credited with having introduced from his Scottish roots (he was born in the lowlands of Scotland, in the 'Iron Burgh' of Coatbridge). The 'Kirkin' ceremonies and processions are undoubtedly enjoyed by many as a celebration of their Scots origin, but alas the practice has no known documented history here, and in the grip of nostalgia for the future it continues to flourish furth of Scotland as brigadoonery. GARMENTS Kilts are made with a choice of pleat styles. Details of an innovative and acclaimed 'double box pleat' creation by Chrystel Amyot can be found here. Why not toast the splendid tartan with 'GENTLEMEN - THE TARTAN' by Murdock Maclean here. Slàinte! |
 Peter MacDonald at the loom  Ayrshire district tartan  Ayrshire #2 tartan  Boyd tartan  Cunningham tartan  Convention of Baronage tartan  Grand Lodge of Scotland tartan  Universal masonic tartan  Scottish Knights Templar tartan  Ayre family tartan  A 'double-box pleat' kilt |
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