The Late Wake — Cait Sìth Scottish Folklore T-Shirt
Rural Myth Co. | Field & Folklore
Keep watch until morning. And keep the cat out.
In the old Highland stories, there were reasons to stay awake beside the dead.
Some of those reasons had four paws.
The Late Wake is a Cait Sìth folklore shirt that takes the form of a Victorian stereoview card, featuring two nearly identical antique photographs of a Scottish stone cottage window.
In the first photograph, a single candle burns on an empty windowsill.
In the second, the candle is still there.
But something else has arrived.
An enormous black cat sits in the window, its eyes glowing faintly in the darkness.
There’s one small white spot on its chest.
The card reads:
THE LATE WAKE
KEEP THE WATCH TILL THE BURIAL.
CAIT SÌTH · THE FAIRY CAT
In Scottish Highland folklore, the Cait Sìth was a supernatural black cat said to threaten the souls of the recently deceased.
Families traditionally kept watch before burial, using games, riddles, and company to guard against an unwelcome visitor.
The design recreates that unsettling tradition through the visual language of nineteenth-century stereoscopic photography.
Two photographs.
One candle.
One unexpected guest.
Rendered in Pine Black, Tobacco Brown, Muted Gold, and Bone, this vintage-inspired illustration brings a darker chapter of Highland folklore to the Field & Folklore Collection from Rural Myth Co.
Perfect for Scottish folklore enthusiasts, Gothic history lovers, antique photography collectors, supernatural history fans, and anyone who appreciates a ghost story that doesn’t need a ghost.
THE LATE WAKE
The candle is still burning.
The window is no longer empty.
And somebody had better stay awake.
Available in Grape, Ivory, Moss, Pepper, and Washed Denim.
Product details
- Comfort Colors 1717 garment-dyed tee
- 100% ring-spun US cotton, pre-shrunk, 6.1 oz heavyweight
- Relaxed unisex fit, sizes S–3XL
- Soft, washed-in vintage feel
- Made to order just for you
