Old and rare Scottish tartans

One of the few tartans concerning whose antiquity no doubt appears ever to have been suggested, the Mac Laine of Lochbuie ranks in every extensive collection of old patterns, though till recently it was not represented in any published work. Particularly fine examples are preserved in the Willis collection and in that of The Mackintosh. The design is generally woven in an open sett, which produces an admirable effect. It is unique among old patterns, by reason of the quantity of pale blue in its composition, that colour being usually reserved for narrow lines. The date of its introduction is unknown, but its use in the Western Isles last century is authenticated, and tradition points to its early origin. Despite the fact that the clan followed the Marquis of Montrose and joined the rising of ’15, it took no share in the ’45; and it may consequently be presumed that the members, like others in similar cases, continued to wear their tartan and dress after these had been formally proscribed. The present Mac Laine of Lochbuie wears also the hunting Mac Laine of Lochbuie, which, as he himself points out, is of modern invention.