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  1. #1
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    Late 17th century portrait showing Highland Dress

    A chance discover led me to this interesting portrait from c1670 showing the actor John Lacy in Highland Dress (Source, the Royal Collection). I've posted (in higher res) and commented on this on my own FB page but it might promote some discussion here too if people are interested.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	John Lacy (d. 1681) c. 1668-70 by Michael Wright. Royal Collection (sm).jpg 
Views:	366 
Size:	325.1 KB 
ID:	33612


  2. #2
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    Well, he certainly has it much higher than we wear them today!

  3. #3
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    That might reflect the use of a full plaid with trews. There are vew examples of this combination and this is possibly the clearest.

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  5. #4
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    One wonders to what extent his clothing reflects the exaggeration so often seen in actors costumes.
    It's coming yet for a' that,
    That Man to Man, the world o'er,
    Shall brothers be for a' that. - RB

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  7. #5
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    Is the 'background' of the tartan a moss green? Or grey?

    On first glance it seems to have that nice combination of a pale moss green and dark blue.

    I'm fascinated by the colours in this shawl, said to have been brought from Scotland to Virginia c1820, which has become the basis for the recent West Virginia tartan.

    Last edited by OC Richard; 30th March 18 at 07:26 AM.
    Proud Mountaineer from the Highlands of West Virginia; son of the Revolution and Civil War; first Europeans on the Guyandotte

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  9. #6
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    Wonderful find this portrait.

    Quote Originally Posted by figheadair View Post
    That might reflect the use of a full plaid with trews. There are vew examples of this combination and this is possibly the clearest.

    I think those look like thigh high Castle Topped spats of some sort. The detail on those faces is incredible. What a marvelous find.

    That tartan is very interesting as well.

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  11. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by figheadair View Post
    That might reflect the use of a full plaid with trews. There are vew examples of this combination and this is possibly the clearest.
    Peter: could it be half of the full plaid, as I would have thought that there would be much more material above the belt, if it was a full plaid?
    Very unusual ( to my eyes) colours in the tartan. Thanks for posting this.
    Took me awhile to find your Facebook page; hope you are OK with me including a link ( if not, message me and I will remove)?

    https://www.facebook.com/Peter-MacDo...8353548605372/
    waulk softly and carry a big schtick

  12. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by jhockin View Post
    Peter: could it be half of the full plaid, as I would have thought that there would be much more material above the belt, if it was a full plaid?
    Very unusual ( to my eyes) colours in the tartan. Thanks for posting this.
    Took me awhile to find your Facebook page; hope you are OK with me including a link ( if not, message me and I will remove)?
    It's possible I suppose. It would certainly be easier to wear for an actor wanting to create the effect of a plaid but without needing the full amount of material needed for outdoor wear. Half of a full plaid would of course be a single width length.

    Two things argue against the cloth shown being single width though; the apparent selvedge pattern on both edges and the fact that the common width of cloth before 1800 being about 26 inches. There were exceptions of course and there were undoubtedly techniques that have been lost. Perhaps this is one such.

  13. #9
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    Peter,

    One of the things we as Jacobite reenactors do is to inform the public that today's rules regarding kilt wear didn't exist before Victorian times. I've seen other period pictures of Highlanders wearing both plaids and truibhs, so I believe it was common if one could afford that much clothing. Secondly, the length of the plaids hem above the knee varied greatly. In his "Letters from a Gentleman", Burt pointed out that Highlanders sometimes wore their plaids so high above the knee that their privates were barely covered, and if a Highlander was walking uphill of a viewer, nothing was concealed. In my old Highland Redcoat unit, when the temperatures went up, so did some guy's plaids, and they went down when it got cold. The same is true in my current Jacobite living history group - as much as 4-5 inches above the knee when it's hot. While this portrait of an actor may have been contrived by the artist, or just done for effect by the actor, the practice of "short kilting" was practiced before the '45.

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  15. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by figheadair View Post
    A chance discover led me to this interesting portrait from c1670 showing the actor John Lacy in Highland Dress (Source, the Royal Collection). I've posted (in higher res) and commented on this on my own FB page but it might promote some discussion here too if people are interested.

    Peter,

    Very interesting painting that I haven't seen before. The character on the right seems to be a cleric. The middle figure appears to be a gentleman with a tartan coat on (details not clear). The amount of ribbons on this figure's shoes is amazing! As to the Highlander figure, I'm kind of intrigues by his costuming details. His shoes appear to be flat-sole "turnshoes" (although antiquated in most of Europe, still in use in the Highlands). His truibhs are not cut on the bias, which was done back in the day (on truibhs as well as on hose). The figure has on a "slashed" jacket - again antiquated but still done in the Highlands (see the portrait of Lord Mungo Murray). His plaid is interesting for its shortness, but what the figure apparently has on under the plaid (and over his truibhs) is confusing - note the scalloped bottom edge. If you have a chance to talk to a costume historian about this painting, I should be interested in learning more about that. Are you planning to do a paper on this picture?

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