An "exceptional" archive comprising nearly 800 historic tartan samples, produced by the prominent 19th and 20th-century manufacturer J&D Paton, has been gifted to the nation. Stuart Paton, the great-great-grandson of the firm's founder, donated the extensive collection, which includes pieces dating back over two centuries, to National Museums Scotland (NMS).
Royal and Military Tartans
The collection features fabrics crafted for Queen Victoria and the royal family during the 19th-century Highland revival, military tartans supplied to Scottish regiments, previously unrecorded clan designs, and rare examples woven for women's fashion. Experts at NMS believe the archive, which chronicles the company's history from its 1820s foundation to its closure in the 1960s, could significantly alter the current understanding of tartan production and its expansion into global markets and new fashions.
Preservation and Research
The donated fabrics will undergo cataloguing before being made accessible for research at the National Museums Collection Centre in Edinburgh. NMS is also seeking stories from descendants of J&D Paton employees to enrich the historical record. This donation promises to rewrite what we know about the iconic textile, from its role in clan identity to its commercial evolution.
