The story that garments for husbands and sons were knit in a special family pattern so that in the event a man was lost at sea, if and when his body was
found, he could be identified by the sweater on his back is an old Irish Myth.
As to the mystery behind the myth? It's solved. The most creative Aran knitters devised their own stitches and arrangements and a typical sweater might contain up to eight different patterns. In J.M. Synge’s famous play "Riders to the Sea," the sister of a drowned man recognizes him by a flaw in his knitted socks – a dropped stitch. Utilizing compelling copy, savvy marketers parlayed the notion that drowned fishermen could be identified by their sweaters - nothing as simple as socks and a dropped stitch. Today, even the Irish believe it's a sweater.
Jurak, if you drown in all that beer you're drinking, be sure you are wearing a sweater so that we will know it is you. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" />
![[Linked Image]](http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/AEmblem/2Pic/Sweater.gif)
