Black Watch sporran with a story

[OC Richard]

First a tiny bit of background.

When khaki drab wool Service Dress uniforms were introduced in 1908 there were no associated sporrans for Other Ranks; they had only their long horsehair Full Dress sporrans.

In World War One, Officers of some regiments wore civilian brown leather Day Dress sporrans.

By World War Two brown leather sporrans were issued to all ranks. The pattern varied by regiment, for example Gordon Highlanders and Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders had a popper concealed within the flap, while the Black Watch used an old-fashioned brass stud. The Black Watch sporran also had a unique shape both to the flap and the body (top row, a 1940s example and a 1950s example).

At some point- perhaps around 1970- these traditional No2 Dress brown leather sporrans were replaced by a generic pattern for all regiments. Seems for a time the traditional brown leather came to be "bulled" with shoe-black, but at some point the army went all-in and had them made in glossy black synthetic leather (bottom left).

Happily with the creation of the Royal Regiment of Scotland the No2 Dress sporran returned to the traditional dark brown genuine leather (bottom right).

This all brings us to the sporran at lower left, currently on Ebay for just a few dollars.

Inside it's written "Capt Peaple". The name rang a bell, but I couldn't place it, and Google had to come to my rescue.

Major Ian Peaple had an illustrious career as an army musician and bandmaster. He served with several regiments though this sporran is from his brief stint in the Black Watch from 1992-1994, in Hong Kong.

If you've heard the glorious and oft-played arrangement for Pipes & Drums and Military Band of Highland Cathedral you've heard Major Peaple's music.

[JPS]

How something like that ended up in a thrift shop, I can't imagine.

Are you bidding on it, Richard?

[OC Richard]

If I was a militaria collector I would jump on it, but I'm not.

The only things I collect are old photos and catalogues.

[jhockin]

“ glossy black synthetic leather ”: looks like plastic. I can’t imagine many being pleased to wear those ugly things. 😖

[OC Richard]

“ glossy black synthetic leather ”: looks like plastic. I can’t imagine many being pleased to wear those ugly things. ��

I don't like that look either, but I think it was the army acknowledging that all the soldiers were "bulling" their brown sporrans with shoe-black, and with those shiny black plastic sporrans there's no shoe-black to rub off on their kilts.

Like the old days when soldiers pipe-clayed their buff leather belts white, and you'd see white rub off on their scarlet jackets. In modern times they just made the kit out of white vinyl.

What I would be interested in knowing is

1) when did soldiers start blacking their brown sporrans, and

2) when did the Scottish Highland regiments switch from their traditional brown leather No2 dress sporrans (which had a different pattern in each regiment) to those generic black vinyl ones.

Here in 1957 the Black Watch are still wearing their traditional pattern. Being it's a B&W photo we can't see if they're brown or black, but I've never seen one of this pattern sporran either made black, or bulled black.

(Note the Pipe Major's offwhite hose and pale puttees, as opposed to the khaki drab of the rest of the pipers.)

[DCampbell16B]

If I was a militaria collector I would jump on it, but I'm not.

The only things I collect are old photos and catalogues.

OCR, sent you a PM