Builders stripping out estate agency Mactaggart & Co’s office during a refurb were ‘delighted’ to find some rare tiling done by the great-grandfather of the agency’s boss Fergus Duncan.

He ran the tiling firm James Duncan Ltd which began life in 1865 and went on to become one of Scotland’s most famous tile manufacturers.

Duncan had been searching for examples of his work for years, but it had proved elusive and Duncan had no idea there had ever been any in Larg, where the office is.

Rare find

Nor was there any obvious family connection to the premises, as it had originally been home to The Tartan Tea Room, the Buttercup Dairy Shop and Macmillan’s Butchers. Mactaggart & Co. had moved there in 1971.

The tiles were commissioned by the Buttercup Dairy Shop which, at the time, had around 250 branches in Scotland and the North of England.

The design features a tiled panel framed by a buttercup garland and swags, which was the Buttercup monogram and was signed by Duncan senior.

I’ve scoured many Scottish high streets over the years looking for their tiles.”

The only other surviving Buttercup fascias are kept under glass in Selkirk and in Edinburgh, so the find in Largs is particularly rare.

Duncan said: “I was delighted to discover this unexpected link between our estate agency and my great grandfather’s tiling business as the Buttercup Dairy Company was such an important contract for them.

“I’ve scoured many Scottish high streets over the years looking for their tiles. To uncover this connection to our family’s history while renovating our 75 Main Street office has been an unexpected bonus in what was already an exciting time for the future of MacTaggart & Co.”

Image: Mactaggart and Co