The Quaich

The quaich - taken from the Gaelic for cup - is uniquely Scottish

, there being no evidence of its use anywhere else in the world. One theory is that it developed from the use of scallop shells as drinking vessels which were readily available around the Scottish coast. What we know for sure is that its beginnings originate in the Highlands and Islands around the the early to middle part of the 16th century, only spreading to major population areas like Edinburgh and Glasgow much later in the 17th century.

Materials used to make the quaich vary greatly. Examples have been discovered fashioned from stone, brass, pewter, horn and, latterly, silver but the traditional material was wood. The standard quaich is a shallow circular drinking vessel intended to hold whisky. It has a pair of small lug handles projecting horizontally from opposite sides of the rim. The lugs, though functional, are of a unique carved style giving the quaich much of its special character. The making of these cups was an intricate art by which the quaich was either turned from a solid piece of wood or built up with tiny staves. The best quaichs, considered to be masterpieces, were built up with light and dark wood staves and bound round with withies or metal bands. The dozen or so staves of alternating woods such as plane-tree and laburnum were coopered together and also 'feathered' into each other; this was a technique in which small slivers of wood were split away from the sides of the staves and slotted into equivalent parings cut in the opposite direction. The centre of the bowl was usually decorated with a silver coin or an engraved disc or 'print', with coat-of-arms, initials, motto or familiar phrase such as 'drink up'. The disc also served the function of masking and sealing the centre of the bowl where the points of the staves met. This tradition of decorating the quaich is reflected today by personalised engraving which is available on the majority of quaichs that we stock.

Over the years drinking from the quaich became the traditional way to greet friends and acquaintances and to toast them on their way, a tradition still practised in many places today. Our range of quaichs include a fantastic value for money Celtic motif design or if your looking for something a little different how about one fashioned from ox horn?

The use of metal as a material for quaichs was introduced in the late 17th century and quaich making was a highly regarded profession in 17th century Scotland. Quaichmakers probably made all sorts of wooden eating and drinking vessels, but took the name of their profession from their best work, much as workers in silver and gold called themselves goldsmiths. In fact, quaichs became the ultimate fashion statement and the use of precious metals in their manufacture became common. This posed something of a problem, since wooden quaichs are solid and quite thick at the bottom, it would be a bit difficult for a fine Scottish lady to sip delicately from a solid silver quaich the weight of a small boulder. The answer was to make the quaich of sheet silver, so that the sides were of constant thickness. This allowed metal quaichs to imitate the outer form of their wooden counterparts, but made the inner cavity much deeper and more bowl-like.

The quaich has a special place in the heart of all who know something of its history and is a prized possession of many people who have an association with Scotland. Indeed history shows that all Scots people whether Clan Chief or Crofter, Merchant or Nobleman held the quaich in extremely high regard.

Today the quaich is most popular as a gift for weddings, christenings or special presentations, in which case you might find our quaich gift sets the perfect choice. Whatever the case kiltmakers.co.uk offer a large range of styles & designs and we're confident that amongst them you'll find the one to suit your needs.

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