Image: MacDuff tartan (1819, Wilsons), centred, zoomed out

Description: The tartan of Clan MacDuff as recorded by the weaver William Wilson & Son of Bannockburn. This is the most conventional MacDuff tartan used today by the clan. (This particular MacDuff tartan is also among those used by Clan Spens.) It is unclear whether this first appeared in their 1819 Key Pattern Book or in earlier of their records (which survive to the 1780s). Its similarity to the Stewart/Stuart tartans suggests it is the older of the MacDuff patterns. This MacDuff pattern is also the model for the Red MacDuff (Government No. 16) tartan militarily used by 154 (Scottish) Regiment RLC, with slightly different proportioning. Wilsons also produced at least two variants on this tartan, one with blue "tram track" over-checks in place of the black ones [1], and one with thicker green tram tracks [2]. The overall pattern is basically the same as that of royal Stewart, but without the latter's yellow and white over-checks. It is possible that a version of what is now MacDuff was ancestral to the Stewart sett (though the earliest directly attested recording of a MacDuff variant was c. 1815-1820 in the Highland Society of London records, while the Stewart variant known as Prince Charles Edwart Stuart has been identified in surviving cloth samples from the mid-18th century, and is one of the oldest setts in continuous production [3]. The MacDuffs have been familialy connected to the Stewarts of Albany since the late 14th century. This image is not exactly full-sett, and cannot tile horizontally and vertically; this centred and zoomed-out version was created for tabular comparison to other regimental tartans. Scottish Register of Tartans notes on this pattern: "Scottish Tartans Society notes: In early sources there are many small variations of this design, particularly in the shades and width of the red and blue bands. W. & A. Smith in their 1850 Authenticated Tartans of the Clans and Families of Scotland give this sett and say 'Our authority for this Tartan is "use and wont". It is universally worn in the North as MacDuff, it has always been known by the "Trade" as such; and upon a late occasion, when, in honour of Her Majesty, there was one of those grand fetes given at Braemar, called a "Gathering," the numerous retainers of General Duff and many others were attired in this Tartan.'" This is a usual, mirroring tartan. Thread count (in "/" notation): /R72 B18 K24 G34 R20 K6 R20/ (or in boldfacing notation: R72 B18 K24 G34 R20 K6 R20) As with all the other MacDuff tartans aside from the Vestiarium Scoticum version, it typically uses a lighther (Balmoral) blue than the typical dark "tartan blue".
Title: MacDuff tartan (1819, Wilsons), centred, zoomed out
Credit: Own work
Author: SMcCandlish, made with the old Windows program Textile32
Permission: Public domain
Usage Terms: Creative Commons Zero, Public Domain Dedication
License: CC0
License Link: http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en
Attribution Required?: No