28/10/2026
Love this! I’d like a new skirt please & thanks!!
Scotland has created a special tartan to honor approximately 2,500 people executed for witchcraft — and every thread tells a story of injustice.
For 173 years, Scotland's Witchcraft Act of 1563 allowed thousands of people, mostly women, to be prosecuted for alleged witchcraft. An estimated 4,000 people were accused, and approximately 2,500 were executed, often after brutal interrogations, torture, and forced confessions.
Now, more than 280 years after the law was repealed, their memory has been woven into a remarkable piece of Scottish heritage.
In February 2025, the Witches of Scotland tartan was officially registered with the Scottish Register of Tartans. Created through a collaboration between campaigners Claire Mitchell and Zoe Venditozzi and textile designer Clare Campbell of Prickly Thistle, the pattern transforms historical suffering into a wearable memorial.
Every color and thread carries a hidden meaning.
173 black threads represent the 173 years the Witchcraft Act remained in force, from 1563 to 1736.
Black and gray symbolize the darkness of the witch trials and the ashes of those whose bodies were burned.
Red and pink recall the victims' suffering and the legal tapes used to bind court documents.
15 and 17 threads encode the years 1563 and 1736 through the sums of their individual digits.
Three white threads represent the campaign's three goals: a formal apology, a legal pardon, and a national memorial.
The campaign has already achieved one major milestone. In March 2022, then-First Minister Nicola Sturgeon formally apologized for the historical persecution. However, campaigners continue to seek a legal pardon and a national memorial.
Unlike traditional clan tartans, this design is not restricted to a particular family. Anyone can wear it, transforming scarves, kilts, and other garments into a living memorial for people whose lives were destroyed by fear, superstition, and injustice.
More than a decorative fabric, this tartan is a reminder that history can be preserved not only in books and monuments but also in the clothes we wear.
Sources: Sarah Kuta (2025), See the New Tartan Pattern Created to Honor Women Accused of Witchcraft in Scotland Between 1563 and 1736, Smithsonian Magazine; Witches of Scotland (2025), The Meaning in the Weave.
