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The Keith Coat of Arms |
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A portrait of John Brown, commissioned by Queen Victoria, in 1883, hangs near the Highland suit and underpants (the Queen insisted that all Kilt wearers in her household wore them!) John Brown became one of the Queen's most trusted servants and accompanied her everywhere. On one occasion in 1865 he saved her life from an assassin. Queen Victoria was also accredited with inventing the Kilt Pin. She was inspecting the troops one windy day when she saved a soldier from embarrassment by removing her hatpin and inserted it point down into the soldier's Kilt. This is why the Kiltpin is always worn with the pin downwards. The museum has over 1,000 artefacts and has nine large display cabinets with several other smaller ones including the famous Mauchlinware artefacts on display. There are over 700 Tartans on display in the Tartan Section including Clan, Family, Military, District, Corporate and commercial in a selection of modern designs.
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The oldest piece of checked cloth or tartan found in Scotland dates
from around 325AD-Yes 325AD! The cloth was found near Falkirk, a
simple check in two shades of brown, a long way from the checked
and coloured tartans that came to be worn in the highlands of Scotland
in the 1500's. There are now over 3,000 tartans, many of them are
no more than 20 years old! |
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This remarkable woman's plaid or Arisaid is the oldest dated in the world. Initialled and dated 1726. The Arisaid worn only by women, reached from head to heels, belted at the waist and pinned at the breast. "The ancient dress wore by the women and which is yet wore by some of the Vulgar, called 'Arisad, is a white 'plaid', having a few stripes of black, blew and red." |
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| Culloden
A scene of the Culloden battle, painted by David Morier, illustrates how the 'butcher' Duke of Cumberland's government troops decimated 'Bonnie Prince Charlie's' ill-equipped highlanders in 25 minutes, the injured left to die and the captured burned alive. This marks a sustained period of genocidal oppression for the Highlands and the burning of Tartan and the Highland dress. |
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William Wilson and his son Alexander, founded a tartan weaving company in the 1760's and supplied the army with tartan-through the French, Indian and American wars and exported to as far as Rio and Barbados. By 1784 they produced 35 superfine tartans made of very fine wool, all of which can be found in his treasured sample book. See the huge Kilt measuring over 23ft (7 metres) long and accoutrements including leopard skin and horse hair sporrans, a silver hilted sword and Dirk, all belonging to the Duke of Sussex, who was the brother of King George IV. Also on view in the Museum is a Kilt specially made by the Keith Kilt School. It measures 52ins long, 80 ins around the waist and would fit a 12 feet tall man. The barrel man it is displayed on was made by Speyside Cooperage, Craigachie. |
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