Old and rare Scottish tartans : with historical introduction and descriptive notices

This volume opens a hidden world of Scotland’s most elusive tartans, drawing from centuries‑old portraits, family heirlooms, and the few surviving cloth collections. The editor spent years gaining access to private holdings, hand‑weaving each pattern in silk to capture the true interplay of colour that printing could never reproduce. Listeners will hear vivid descriptions of each sett, from the muted hues of a 17th‑century clan banner to the striking, multi‑threaded designs that once cloaked Highland warriors. The limited‑edition nature of the work underscores its role as a visual archive brought to life in sound.

Beyond the fabrics, the book offers a carefully ordered historical introduction that traces references to tartan through medieval chronicles, travel journals, and early legal records. The author corrects longstanding misquotes and presents newly uncovered passages, allowing a clearer picture of how the patterned cloth entered Scottish culture. Listeners gain both a scholarly overview and a sense of the romance that surrounds each thread, making the obscure accessible without sacrificing depth.