Fly Plaid - Which Shoulder??

[Downunder Kilt]

I shall not go into the merits of MacLeay's portraits and what was and wasn't artistic licence and the fact that we can't see the back of the gentleman that you have cited neither proves or disproves the facts. I have found 50 photos of gents wearing highland plaids in the late 19th century and early 20th and 2 have, what could be referred to as, fly plaids. As for your interpretation of a described half belted plaid as a fly plaid, I'll leave those jumps in description to you. I refer you to Matt Newsomes New Highland House site for excellent description and photos of a half belted plaid