Feileadh Mor tartan as camouflage?

[Steve Ashton]

No one seems to have mentioned that Deer and Elk are essentially red-green color blind. Their color vision is limited to the short blue and middle green wavelengths of colors. As a result, deer and elk can distinguish blue from red, but not green from red, or orange from red. You can hunt in blaze orange as deer and elk see this as gray or brown.

[Luke MacGillie]

5 The red coats were not the scarlet most people think of until 1881, but a much duller red madder colour.

For the Enlisted men, yes,

Sgt's had mock scarlet, still dyed with madder, but with more bleaching of the wool prior to dying.

Officers had the bright scarlet coats.

Here is a good breakdown of reproduction military broadcloth and kersey of the 18th and Early 19th centuries color matched to surviving samples

http://www.historicaltextiles.com/Colours.html

[figheadair]

My opinion of the tartan / camouflage discussion is.

When you dyed your wool, you used the materials around you to produce the dyes. Therefore if you are in your home area your dyed wool will match the surrounding scenery whether bright or not ( for the most part ). It's that time of year at the moment SWMBO is busy collecting for her weaving group.....

Natural dyestuffs are often a completely different colour to the dye colour they give. It is also a fact that imported dyes were widely used and preferred for tartan in the 18th century because of the range and quality of their colours.

[The Q]

Natural dyestuffs are often a completely different colour to the dye colour they give. It is also a fact that imported dyes were widely used and preferred for tartan in the 18th century because of the range and quality of their colours.

For the rich yes, but the majority of the highlanders were poor, in remote areas. Getting expensive imported Dyes for clothing when you are struggling to feed and house yourselves I would have thought unlikely for the majority.

[figheadair]

For the rich yes, but the majority of the highlanders were poor, in remote areas. Getting expensive imported Dyes for clothing when you are struggling to feed and house yourselves I would have thought unlikely for the majority.

Actually we have no idea just how widespread the use of imported dyestuffs was amongst the Highland population but visitors accounts, those by the likes of Martin Martin and Gaelic literature all suggest the Gaels delighted in bright colours with red being especially prized. This mid-18th century specimen is possible a good indication of the type of pattern that might have been used by the less wealthy.

[Me cousin Jack]

An interesting article in Scotland clans that talks a bit about dyes, proscription and the resurgence of the tartan.

http://www.scotclans.com/brief-history-tartan-scotland/

[figheadair]

An interesting article in Scotland clans that talks a bit about dyes, proscription and the resurgence of the tartan.

http://www.scotclans.com/brief-history-tartan-scotland/

A useful handrail but beware, it contains a number of errors such as that tartan was banned after Culloden.

[IsaacW]

Actually we have no idea just how widespread the use of imported dyestuffs was amongst the Highland population but visitors accounts, those by the likes of Martin Martin and Gaelic literature all suggest the Gaels delighted in bright colours with red being especially prized. This mid-18th century specimen is possible a good indication of the type of pattern that might have been used by the less wealthy.

And when I argued this with a Jacobite reenacting group, I darn near got kicked off their FaceBook page.

[Tobus]

figheadair, can you tell me more about that tartan? I love the colour palette. Your photo name seems to suggest it is an unknown tartan, but also says Clan Stewart. Is this actually a clan tartan, or just an old unnamed tartan?

[Orvis]

And when I argued this with a Jacobite reenacting group, I darn near got kicked off their FaceBook page.

What Jacobite reenactor group were you debating with that took such umbrage? Just a matter of curiosity, because I belong to a Jacobite reenacting group (Appin Historical Society, portraying part of the Stewart of Appin clan regiment in the '45). Unfortunately, I used to do Facebook, but not at present, so I'm not likely to get into it with this group. It will be handy to know, however, if I ever meet them at an event.

I will say that most reenactors do their due dilligence in the matter of researching all aspects of their portrayals, but there are always the new guys (or the lazy ones) that have not yet done so and can pass along inaccurate information from the romantic mythology that is flying around out there.