Scottish Clans
Mouat Tartans & Clan
Who Wears Mouat Tartan? - Associated Names
First of all to explain why there are so many tartans, way over 2000 in fact. There are an awful lot of Scottish clans to start with and on top of this each clan can have many different tartans and names associated with it.
- Mowat
- Mowatt
- Mowit
- Mowitt
MouatTartans
2 variationsEach tartan can have multiple variations, the most common of which are Ancient, Modern, Weathered, Hunting and Dress
About tartan variations
- Ancient
- Modern
- Weathered
- Hunting
- Dress
Ancient Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer colours typical of the Ancient tartans, mossy greens and sky blues, a more orangey red and some would say showing off the pattern to much greater effect as as the contrasts are much brighter than the Modern tartans. The pattern or sett remains the same across all variations of a single tartan, and only the shades or tones vary.
Helpful Advice
Post 1860 chemical dyes replaced the natural animal and vegetable dyes and the Modern Tartans were born with their stronger and bolder colours. The soft greens and blues become bottle green and navy blue, reds are scarlet.
Modern Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer colours typical of the Ancient tartans. Post 1860 chemical dyes replaced the natural animal and vegetable dyes and the Modern Tartans were born with their stronger and bolder colours. The soft greens and blues become bottle green and navy blue, reds are scarlet.
Helpful Advice
The Modern tartans are often the more subtle combinations such as the classic Black Watch Modern
Weathered Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer, more earthy colours typical of the Weathered tartans, reminiscent of bolder colours subjected to wind, rain and sunshine producing beautiful faded tones, olive greens and browns, and very light blues with reds that are more pink than red.
Helpful Advice
Some mills refer to the Weathered tartans as Muted.
Hunting Tartan
The Hunting Tartans are the camouflage tartans and some clans don't have these variations because they are already predominantly green or brown and don't need amendment to blend in with nature's colours. The Black Watch or Gunn tartans are examples of these, whereas a tartan such as the Fraser is predominantly red and would not provide much cover for men out hunting.
Helpful Advice
One thing to remember if you are ordering your tartan to match an existing kilt or accessory is that although the sett and colours are the same, there can be a slight difference in colour from one mill to the next. This is purely down to yarn dying so if you need an exact match we suggest you order a swatch to double check.
Dress Tartan
The Dress Tartans were designed as the name suggests for celebrations and highland dance. The sett or pattern of the tartan remains the same and the main colour is changed to white, or extra white is added to the pattern to give it a brighter, more "fancy" appearance. The Scots do like to bend the rules and occasionally instead of white thread, yellow is used and this is where the rather wild MacLeod Dress Modern and Barclay Dress Modern came from.
Helpful Advice
One thing to remember if you are ordering your tartan to match an existing kilt or accessory is that although the sett and colours are the same, there can be a slight difference in colour from one mill to the next. This is purely down to yarn dying so if you need an exact match we suggest you order a swatch to double check.
From the start
Mouat Clan Origins & History
Explore the history
How it all started
Territories
The first recorded member of the Mowat family in Scotland is Robert de Montealto from Wales but believed to be of Norman origian and went on to acquire lands at Ferne in Angus.
Clan Chief
Clan Mouat is an armigerous clan which means that the clan, family or name is registered with the Court of the Lord Lyon, but does not currently have a chief recognised by the Lyon Court.
What's in the name?
It is possible that the name comes from the place name 'Mont Haut', of which there are several examples in France.
Freswick Castle
Freswick Castle is located just outside of Freswick in the very North of Scotland only a short ferry away from Orkney. It is not known exactly when the first building was constructed on the lands, but it is known that there was a building present earlier than the 15th Century. It is thought that the Ross's and the Mowats were the first family to build on the lands. The Mowats first acquired Freswick castle in 1410, but they only held the property until the mid 16th Century when the Sinclairs accquired the proerty and greatly expanded what was then a Tower House into the Castle that stands today. However, the Castle was passed back to the Mowats in 1635, but again they only held the Castle for 30 years until 1661 when the Sinclair family purchased it once again, they held it until the 20th Century when they finally sold it. The Castle has recently been renovated and it occupied by a family who do occasionally hire it out for events.Hatton Castle
Hatton Castle in Aberdeenshire belonged to the Mowatts in the 13th century and are now owned and lived in by the Duff family and famed for their gardens.
Clan Motto: Monte Alto (On a high mountain)
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