Find-out Fridays
Find-out Fridays is a DRESS project scholarly extension output. It is a set of short explanatory texts
on clothing, footwear, jewellery, and accessories that were commonly wore throughout the
16th and 17th centuries.
Find-out Fridays are released on social networks (Facebook and Instagram) every week conveying
clear and accessible knowledge related to our work and research. Each publication explains the item and
its function (employing time, social, and cultural contextualization), and displays images that illustrate the contents. Whenever possible we resort to examples from the written and visual sources we are analysing.
Aiguillettes
Find-out Fridays #15 | 31/01/2020
Aiguillettes, also known as aiglets or points, were a decorative accessory that could be used in two different ways: to fasten items of clothing or to adorn the tips of the various types of cords, ribbons and laces used to adjust, tie, untie and/or link pieces of clothing. They were made of metal and, in more sophisticated examples, adorned with precious stones, pearls and enamels. Aiguillettes were worn in pairs and, despite there being some exceptions, this is how they generally appear in documentation, both visual and written. In the latter, they tend to appear in significant numbers. Infanta Beatrice (1504-1538), when she went to Savoy for her marriage to Duke Charles III, took with her more than 450 aiguillettes, while the post-mortem inventory of her brother Infante Duarte (1515-1540) recorded a total of 697.
Aiguillettes, aiglets or points
Unidentified origin, late 16th century-early 17th century
© Skokloster Castle, Skokloster (Sweden)
Amulet
Find-out Fridays #21 | 13/03/2020
Amulets, or lucky charms, were objects to which individuals and/or societies, at certain moments, attributed protective and healing properties, which were magically granted to their owners. These objects were made of different materials, normally of animal or mineral origin, and were worn as accessories during the modern period, hanging around the neck or on strings around the torso or waist. The magical power of amulets stemmed from a combination of aspects, such as the shape, colour or material from which they were made, the decorative motifs and inscriptions, or the words uttered and the practices developed around these accessories. Despite the strict religious and moral regulation exercised by the Catholic Church, superstition and the use of amulets was tolerated and common throughout society. Coral (calcareous and branched concretion) and jet (fossil carbon of vegetable origin) were among the miraculous materials most frequently used on the Iberian Peninsula.
Amulets and Crucifix
Juan Pantoja de la Cruz, The Infanta Anne of Austria (detail), 1602
© Convento de las Descalzas Reales, Madrid
Armour
Find-out Fridays #32 | 29/05/2020
Armour, the name commonly given to defensive weapons, was made for the physical protection of warriors and to convey an image of the honour and status of the wearer. During the early modern period, there was a merging of clothing fashions and the shapes of armour, as summarised by Isidoro de Almeida – soldier, architect and author of military treatises – in 1573, when he wrote: “to be well made, weapons must follow the order of gowns, and gowns must follow that of weapons.” It is in the forms and proportions of the armour that we see a clear reflection of the fluctuations of taste in clothing during the second half of the sixteenth century. Examples of this include the reproduction of the shapes of the jerkin and/or the doublet in the metal of the corselet – the structure protecting the torso –, the close-fitting sleeves, as well as the use of vertical decorative bands, a motif that became commonplace from the mid ‘Cinquecento’ as a structural decorative element in the most sophisticated pieces of armoury.
Find-out Fridays, in collaboration with the FCT project ‘De re militari. From military writing to the battlefield image in the Portuguese space (1521-1621)’ (PTDC/ART-HIS/32459/2017).
Armour Garniture of George Clifford (1558–1605), Third Earl of Cumberland (detail), 1586
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Arrecadas earrings
Find-out Fridays #35 | 19/06/2020
Arrecadas are roughly circular shaped earrings. In ‘Vocabulário,’ Rafael Bluteau refers to the use of the word in the Bible and to the meaning of the Portuguese verb arrecadar, meaning to keep or save, as they are ‘the accessories kept by women with most trinkets’ (1712, p.553). Although the origins of the word are still somewhat vague, it frequently appears in inventories from the 16th century and it is significant in the context of Portuguese gold and silverworks: on one hand, the term is also used for the round gold earrings produced by prehistoric societies with a command of metal technology and, on the other, it is still used in the production of regional variations, among which are the famous arrecadas of Viana do Castelo. Nowadays, traditional arrecadas earrings are made of gold, using the filigree technique, but during the early modern period they included enamels and seed pearls (small pearls), revealing a possible oriental influence in the shapes and colours of the compositions.
Arrecadas earings (two pairs)
Gold, enamel and aljôfar (small pearls), second half of the 17th century
© Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon
Braided hairstyle
Find-out Fridays #28 | 24/04/2020
A braided hairstyle was a type of headdress, in other words, it was one of the many ways for women to style and wear their hair during the early modern period. The head was covered with a type of coif made of fabric or metal threads and the hair was braided or rolled from the nape of the neck, then decorated with ribbons or wrapped with a strip of fabric that fell down the back. On the Iberian Peninsula, braided hairstyles were very much in vogue during the first half of the 16th century. The documentation produced following the wedding of Prince Duarte and Isabel of Braganza (1537) mentions six types of braid: three worn by the bride (one with netting and pieces of gold; another with netting made of silver thread; and the third in silver) and three worn by one of her sisters, Joana of Braganza (one of which was gold and another silver). Painting shows us how braided hairstyles were popular in Italian city-states during the late 15th and early 16th century and documentation informs us that they were composed of the trinzale (the coif, netting or piece of fabric that covered the head), held in place by the lenza (a strip of fabric attached to the head, with or without jewels) and the coazzone, a braid or ponytail plaited with ribbon.
Braided hairstyle
Christoph Weiditz, “Tracht der vornehmen spanischen Frauen” (“Spanish Women Traditional Costume ”) in Trachtenbuch (details), 1530-1540, f. 147-149
© Germanisches Nationalmuseum Library, Nuremberg
Braies
Find-out Fridays #26 | 17/04/2020
Braies were a type of undergarment formed of a piece of cloth fastened around the genital area, resembling undershorts, made of very fine wool, cotton, linen or other hard-wearing fabrics. The term ‘ceroula’ (breeches) also appears in Portuguese documentation, in particular the ‘ceroula da holanda’, or Dutch breeches, because of the origin of the fabric used. They were worn at all levels of society. In painting, they are mostly depicted worn by men, although women used them as well, either as an item of clothing similar to the men’s version (as can be seen in medieval representations) or because braies (also known as petticoats, waist slips or half slips, etc.) was also the name given to a type of underskirt, an undergarment in the form of a skirt that women wore under their outer clothing.
Braies
Nuno Gonçalves, São Vicente atado à coluna (detail), 1450-1490
© Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisboa
Brooch
Find-out Fridays #6 | 08/11/2019
The brooch was an accessory frequently worn in aristocratic and ecclesiastic circles. It had a dual function in that, as well as being decorative, it was used to fasten. It thus served to join together slashes or two parts of the same piece of clothing; to attach jewellery to garments; or even to close an item of clothing. It could come in various shapes and be made from a variety of materials, such as fabric, metals and precious stones, becoming, in the latter case, a real jewel. The existence of brooches is known to date back to the Roman Empire. Brooches from that era developed from clasps and fibulas, a kind of accessory similar to a breastpin.
Brooch (front, above; reverse, below)
Portugal, ca. 1650-1700
© Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon
Burel
Find-out Fridays #34 | 12/06/2020
Burel is a thick, coarse fabric made from wool, with an off-white (if not dyed), brown or black colour. It was manufactured by removing the sheep’s wool (fleece), then washing, carding (untangling the textile fibres) and spinning it, through a process of twisting (using distaff and spindle), to turn it into thread, and then rolling it into a ball. After being spun, the wool progressed to weaving (by arranging the threads on a loom to make the fabric) and then fulling, a process in which it is compressed, washed and scalded (by pouring hot water on the fabric). Burel is one of the oldest fabrics produced in Portugal (12th century) and during the 18th century the finest in the kingdom was made in São Mamede da Parada do Monte, in Valadares. The particular qualities of this fabric required artisans specialised in its production (burel weavers) and handling (burel tailors). Its low quality and price, however, made it affordable to all. It was used for bedspreads and clothing for the poorest in society, but it was also generally used in mourning attire (white was the colour of mourning until the end of the 15th century), and often bequeathed in wills or used as a form of salary payment. As the proverb goes: “A foot of cloth is worth more than a scrap of burel
Brown burel (Franciscan habit)
Vasco Fernandes, Saint Francis (detail), 1510-1530
© Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon
Buskins
Find-out Fridays #18 | 21/02/2020
The buskin was a type of fitted boot that covered part of the lower leg, sometimes reaching knee, tied at the front or side or not at all, which was very common between the 14th and 17th centuries. They were made of flexible materials, such as leather or strong fabrics, in a variety of colours, and sometimes enhanced with cuts and embellishments. Buskins were worn by different members of various social groups, so it was the quality of the material (e.g. the use of velvet or silk), the skill of the crafting and the type of embellishment that made one pair stand out from another.
Buskins
André Reinoso, Saint Francis Xavier taking leave of John III before his journey to India (detail), ca. 1619
© Igreja de São Roque, Lisbon
Cameo
Find-out Fridays #23 | 27/03/2020
Cameo is a technique of carving on semi-precious stones, ranging from translucent to opaque, where the design stands out against a background in a contrasting colour. Gemstones, such as agate, carnelian and onyx, were chosen for their durability, as the cameo was carved layer by layer, exploring the different colours of the material and allowing the details of the design to be rendered on a meticulous scale. For this reason, cameos and intaglios were highly prized from at least the 8th century BC in Greece, and used in jewellery, vases and pendants. Over time, cameos started to appear in other materials, such as shell and glass. Cameos have made a comeback in various historical periods, particularly during the Renaissance, when classical Greek and Roman motifs and the technique itself were associated with Christian, as well as secular, iconography, as can be seen in the portraits. They were highly valued and collected, sometimes functioning as symbols of dynastic power, mounted in small pieces of jewellery, as objects of personal devotion or of enjoyment.
Cameo depicting unidentified African King
Ca. 1550-1600
© Bibliothèque nationale de France: Cabinet des Médailles, Paris
Chopine
Find-out Fridays #11 | 13/12/2019
Chopines were a type of footwear. The part of the shoe that surrounded the foot was made of fabric or fine leather, then decorated with embroidery, precious stones and metals, and other embellishments. They had platform soles, generally made of wood, metal or cork, which could reach more than ten centimetres in height. Chopines had a dual function: utilitarian, as they prevented ladies’ dresses from being dirtied by wet or muddy paving; and symbolic, in that the height of the shoes conveyed the social status of the person wearing them. Not infrequently, women had to turn to their servants for help putting on and walking in the chopines. Italian composer and dance master Fabritio Caroso explained how ladies should walk and dance properly wearing chopines in a chapter of his treatise Nobilità di Dame (1600). Despite being uncomfortable and even cause for ridicule, these shoes remained in vogue until the 17th century.
Silk and metal Chopine
Italy, ca. 1590-1610
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Cloak
Find-out Fridays #7 | 15/11/2019
The cloak was an item of clothing worn by aristocratic men. In 16th-century Portugal, it could be worn in the traditional way or ‘Spanish-style’, an expression found in written documentary sources, where the cloak was worn covering one shoulder only, according to Carmen Bernis Madrazo’s interpretation. Cloaks were used for protection but those made from expensive fabrics were, more than anything, symbols of wealth and social status.
Cloak
Satin and embroidered, 1580-1600
© Victoria&Albert Museum, London
Codpiece
Find-out Fridays #14 | 24/01/2020
The codpiece was an item of clothing worn during the modern period, consisting of a pouch attached to men’s trousers that was used to cover the genitalia. Over time, various pieces of clothing worn on the male torso became shorter, rising to mid-hip level, which made it necessary to cover this part of the body. The codpiece was fastened to the trousers and doublet with clasps, buttons or other accessories, and was sometimes padded. During the medieval period, codpieces came in simple shapes, but during the 16th century they became more elaborate and exaggerated, sometimes adopting the shape of the penis itself, and becoming a symbol of virility and the exercising of male power.
Codpiece
Kunz Lochner, Suit of Armour of Emperor Ferdinand I (1503–1564) (detail), Nuremberg, 1549
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Coral
Find-out Fridays #25 | 10/04/2020
Corals are marine animals that secrete an external skeleton made of calcium carbonate or organic matter and which can form colourful colonies and reefs. Known since Antiquity, coral was highly valued for its magical, healing and aesthetic properties, and was used in different types of accessories for everyday use and wear. During the early modern period, the red coral of the Mediterranean was most commonly used in Europe and, despite being harvested on the continent’s southern coastline, it was rare and expensive. Centuries of continued exploitation led to the near destruction of the colonies, which are now subject to conservation and protection measures. As it was able to reach high values on the market, coral from Asia began to figure on the list of products that the Portuguese brought back in their cargo vessels from 1498.
Necklace
Lavinia Fontana, Family Portrait (detail), 1598
© Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan
Cuffs
Find-out Fridays #40 | 24/07/2020
Cuffs are the parts of a garment that surround the wrists and are found at the lower ends of the long sleeves of various items of clothing: shirts, dresses, blouses, jackets. When they weren’t worn open and loose, shirt cuffs were closed and fastened by ribbons and laces, often hidden, around the wrist. In the 16th century, the small ruffle created by this fastening started to be left visible beneath men’s doublets and jerkins and women’s sleeves, taking on a decorative function that was quickly replaced by removable cuffs made of elaborate lace and structured and starched ruffles (wrist ruffs). In the 17th and 18th centuries, the use of flamboyant lace cuffs was a mark of wealth and social status. Although they have lost their extravagant status, often replaced by a button fastening, cuffs, as a turn-up or additional layer of fabric sewn to the end of the sleeves, serve to protect the garment from wear and can be quickly replaced, as is still the case in men’s tailoring.
Lace cuffs
Needle lace worked in linen thread, Venice, 1650-1700
© Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Devotional medals
Find-out Fridays #36 | 26/06/2020
Devotional or pious medals were objects with religious symbolism that derived from metallic pagan amulets. They were used as an integral part of chaplets and rosaries – expressing private worship and devotion – and of funeral ornamentation, as well as being bought as souvenirs of pilgrimages to sacred locations. The various patron saints represented and their symbols became a kind of talisman that protected and interceded on behalf of the medal’s owner. Devotional medals spread throughout Christian Europe and, from the 15th century, to overseas territories, where they played an important role in the process of evangelisation, or were carried by soldiers and sailors as an instrument of protection, as in the saying: “If you want to learn to pray, go to sea.” As well as being used as protective amulets, these objects were worn as personal adornments, either around the neck, fixed to clothing or hats, or carried inside bags. Produced from the 16th century by minting, which allowed for easy, quick reproduction and mass distribution, they were made from a variety of raw materials – gold, silver, copper or tin alloy, bronze, lead, etc. – and in many shapes and sizes. Many medals originated in the Holy See, one of the main centres producing this type of object, which were marked with the inscription ROMA, thus serving as an effective means of religious propaganda.
Devotional medal
Sofonisba Anguissola, Portrait of a Spanish Prince (probably Philip II) (detail), ca. 1573
© Gift of Anne R. and Amy Putnam / Bridgeman Images
San Diego Museum of Art, California (USA)
Doublet
Find-out Fridays #10 | 06/12/2019
The male doublet is believed to have derived from the cotton jacket worn by soldiers under their armour or chain mail. During the 16th century, now a common item of clothing for civilians too, it would be lined and padded in order to give volume to the chest area. It also used to be open at the front, fastened with buttons or other accessories, and tight around the waist, falling over the hips. It could have a collar and/or sleeves, the latter being available in a broad range of models. During the warmer periods of the year, as well as at festivals and ceremonies, doublets were worn without any other garment on top. In these cases, they would be made from sophisticated fabrics, with rich embroidery and with a great variety of types of embellishment.
Fencing Doublet
Europe, ca. 1580
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Fan
Find-out Fridays #9 | 29/11/2019
The fan, an object that is still used today, is formed of multiple slats interlinked by paper or fabric, opening into a semi-circle. Its main function was to alleviate the heat in hot, stifling environments. The Portuguese name, leque, is thought to have come from what are known in Portuguese as the Léquias islands (the Ryukyu Islands, in southern Japan). The fan was brought to Europe by the Portuguese in the 16th century, where it lost its ceremonial function and became an essential personal accessory for women. A true symbol of luxury and elegance, from the 17th century it became a vehicle of courtly communication between the sexes, through the development of a secret and symbolic shared language.
Fan
Antonis Mor, Infanta Maria of Portugal (detail), ca. 1552-1553
© Convent of Las Descalzas Reales, Madrid
Farthingale
Find-out Fridays #13 | 17/01/2020
The farthingale was a structure worn by women made from concentric hoops made of wood or metal, which were lined and assembled to form a kind of skirt. It was worn over the shirt but underneath dresses and overskirts. The farthingale was hard and rigid, giving the female silhouette a conical shape. They were used to hold multiple skirts away from ladies’ legs to prevent them from tripping, as well as to emphasise and exaggerate the shapes of the female body, giving the impression of very broad hips. Thought to be of Spanish origin, the farthingale gave rise to other structures such as panniers, crinolettes and crinolines. The oldest records of the farthingale being worn date back to the reign of Queen Joana of Portugal (1439-1475), queen of Castile through marriage to Enrique IV of Castile, and daughter of King Duarte of Portugal and Eleanor of Aragon.
Farthingale
Unknown artist, “Der Spanichs Dantz. Baile español” (detail) in Códice de Trajes, 16th century, f. 3.
© Biblioteca Nacional de España, Madrid
Feathers
Find-out Fridays #37 | 03/07/2020
Feathers are the epidermal structures covering birds’ bodies. Throughout history, they have been used to fill everyday domestic and personal objects and, from the renaissance, as decorations and accessories for clothing, becoming symbols of social and/or individual identity. The description and importation of birds from America and Asia, regarded as exotic and highly coveted for the profusion and colouring of their plumage, led to their gradual incorporation into court fashions. In addition to their extravagant colours, feathers enhanced clothing with a levity, a sensuality of movement and the soft tactile quality of their barbs. During the festivities to celebrate the baptism of the Prince of Piedmont (1522), son of Infanta Beatrice of Portugal, one of the Portuguese entourage caught the party’s attention with his hat ‘in a new and unusual style, embellished with feathers from unknown birds,’ never seen before in the duchy of Savoy.
Feathers
Francisco de Holanda (attr.), Portrait of the Infanta Beatrice, duchess of Savoy (?) (pormenor), 1st half of the 16th century
© Galleria Nazionale di Parma
Fur
Find-out Fridays #8 | 22/11/2019
In the medieval and modern ages, animal furs were frequently used to line pieces of clothing or to decorate them externally. Regarded as a luxurious raw material, furs were subject to fixed prices, often imported and sometimes dyed. In Portugal, the most common furs were stoat, beech marten, common genet, hare, otter, marten and European polecat. In 1521, when Princess Beatriz of Portugal (1504-1538) married the Duke of Savoy, Charles III (1486-1553), she took with her 200 pieces of marten fur. The excessive and uncontrolled hunting of this animal for the use of its fur in luxury clothing led to the rapid extinction of the species on Portuguese soil, still in the 16th century.
Lining and flaps made of fur
Alonso Sánchez Coello , Portrait of Prince Carlos of Asturias (detail), ca. 1555-1559
© Prado Museum, Madrid
Girdle
Find-out Fridays #19 | 28/02/2020
Girdle was the name given to an accessory used to hold loose items of clothing close to the body (allowing freedom of movement) or to fasten and secure the garment, and was worn around the hips or waist. The Portuguese words cinta (girdle) and cinto (belt) were interchangeably used and appear in documentation, as well as some variants – cordão (sash), cabos de cingidouro (decorative braids or chains), for example – that refer to the materials from which they were made: textiles, leather, metal. Girdles were fastened with buckles, clasps and diverse mechanisms, and were sometimes held by hooks attached to the clothing. Although they were initially accessories common to diverse social and professional groups, worn by men and women, through the medieval period girdles started to be decorated with increasingly extravagant and expensive materials, such as precious stones, turning them into objects of social distinction. The girdle, from which everyday objects could also be hung, in the absence of pockets, in time, became a purely decorative accessory and was definitively replaced by the belt for the purpose of securing clothing.
Girdle silver-gilt and enamel, mounted on textile
Italy, ca. 1350-1400
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Gloves
Find-out Fridays #5 | 01/11/2019
For as long as they have existed, gloves have been an accessory for wearing on the hands for the fundamental purpose of warming and protecting them. In the 16th century, they were also a sign of aristocratic distinction, as they were used by those who did not need to use their hands to work. Gloves, made from animal hide or luxurious fabrics, were even more sumptuous when embroidered or embellished with the application of precious metals and stones. When perfumed they were admired even more because people associated the pleasant smell released by the movement of the hands in the gloves with good hygiene and sanitation, as the perfume would cover the bad odours of illness.
Pair of gloves.
England, 16th century.
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Habit
Find-out Fridays #20 | 06/03/2020
The term habit indicates the state and/or appearance of the body or of a thing. In the early modern period, it was commonly used in reference to full-length robes (worn, for example, by clerics, magistrates and academics) as they were long, similar to a tunic, and possessed a range of characteristics and accessories that allowed for the quick identification of the person wearing them. The term was also used to refer to the way that some aristocratic women dressed in widowhood, adopting similar robes to nuns. This was the case with Isabella of Braganza (1511/12-1576), who wore the widow’s habit following the death of Duarte, Duke of Guimarães, in 1540, and before taking vows in the female branch of the Order of Saint Jerome.
Habit with the insignia of Knight of the Order of Christ
Unknown artist, Portrait of a Knight of the Order of Christ (detail), ca. 1626-1650
© Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon
Handkerchief
Find-out Fridays #31 | 22/05/2020
The handkerchief, a form of kerchief, was a square-shaped item, originally used for everyday hygiene (e.g. to blow the nose, dry perspiration from the face or hands, or to protect the head from the sun) and as a way to make a statement through fashion. The oldest representations of handkerchiefs date back to Egypt in around 2000 BC, but their ancient functions fell into disuse during the course of the 20th century. The kerchief reinvented itself as an accessory, becoming bigger, dyed in various colours and decorated with patterns, worn mostly around the neck like a scarf. During the early modern period, handkerchiefs were used as a social and cultural status symbol, almost always depicted in white, but using shiny, satiny fabrics, the edges decorated with elaborate lace-work and sumptuous trimmings, made from silk, gold or silver thread.
Handkerchief
Antonis Mor, Queen Catherine of Portugal (detail), ca. 1552
© Prado Museum, Madrid
Headdress
Find-out Fridays #24 | 03/04/2020
In the early modern period, headdress was the name given to the way women arranged and presented their heads. Headdress, or dressing the head, referred to the way the hair was combed and fixed, and the different types of covering and decoration. Among the latter were textile accessories (such as coifs, hats, caps and veils) and various types of adornment and jewels (such as ribbons, feathers, brooches, chains, etc.). Headdresses were complex and always composed of a considerable number of elements, each with its own name and function. Although used at all levels of society, noblewomen had access to more sumptuous materials and skilled techniques, which were reproduced in a variety of forms and changed regularly, revealing their social, financial and cultural status.
Linen coif embroidered with silk and metal thread
United Kingdom, 1600-30
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Hose
Find-out Fridays #4 | 25/10/2019
The hose was an item of male clothing, and it caused a real revolution in the mode of dressing when it appeared around the 14th century. It was very close-fitting, rather like present-day tights or leggings, providing the male body with great freedom of movement. Nowadays, we use trousers instead of the hose, and they have a strip of fabric around the entire lower stomach and rear, encircling the body, but this was not the case at that time. The hose's legs were independent and therefore worn separately. To prevent them from falling down or moving about on the thighs, they were tied to the waistband with cords and to other items of clothing, such as the doublet, with accessories known as points or leather cords.
Hose
Detail from The Hours of Catherine of Cleves, ca. 1435-60
© The Morgan Library & Museum, New York
Jerkin
Find-out Fridays #29 | 01/05/2020
A jerkin was a kind of outer garment, similar to what we now call a jacket, used by all social groups and and worn over the doublet. As with other items of clothing, there were various types of jerkin. It could have sleeves, tails and decorative elements, or not, it could be padded or unpadded, worn open or closed across the chest, and the length varied. The jerkin underwent some changes between the medieval and early modern periods. In general, during the Middle Ages, jerkins had large armholes (which could reach as far as the waist, offering a glimpse of the clothing worn beneath), they were sleeveless, loose-fitting and reached the knee. During the 16th century, the jerkin became shorter, tighter against the body and fitted around the waist, sometimes with sleeves. It was made from a large variety of materials (different types of textiles, leather, etc.) and decorated with diverse elements and materials, depending on the status of the person wearing it.
Red jerkin made of silk, cotton, linen and metal
United Kingdom, 1610-1625
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Knitting
Find-out Fridays #16 | 07/02/2020
Knitting is a textile technique that uses two or more needles to loop yarn into a series of interconnected stitches, creating a finished item of clothing or another type of fabric. Knitting is thought to have originated in North Africa and the oldest known traces date from Coptic Egypt (around the 11th century). The arrival of this technique in Europe is thought to have occurred via the Iberian Peninsula, where the oldest known examples in the continent are located. Knitted items, widespread from the 16th century, allowed for greater flexibility in the relationship between the items of clothing and the body, particularly noticeable in pieces such as trousers and ladies’ stockings; they were also used for warmth and comfort, as shown by the quantity and variety of bonnets, caps and other head coverings worn by all social groups.
Knitting with five needles
Tommaso da Modena, Alterpiece (detail), before 1349
© Pinacoteca Nazionale Bologna, Bologna
Livery
Find-out Fridays #17 | 14/02/2020
Livery, from the French word ‘livrée’, referred to the set of items of clothing equivalent to what we now call uniform. In medieval and modern times, liveries were given by kings, princes, aristocrats and members of other social groups to their servants. The livery symbolised the prerogatives of these servants, granted by their masters, and were used to distinguish them from other servants. As a rule, the colours used on this clothing were the heraldic colours of stately households, irrefutably establishing the bond of the master/servant relationship. Not much is known about the use of liveries in Portugal, but we do know that on the occasion of the marriage of Isabella of Braganza, in 1537, her brother, Teodósio I, 5th Duke of Braganza, handed out more than 500 liveries. The servants were given doublets, trousers, capes, pelisses, caps and shoes, as well as various other items of clothing and accessories, according to the position they occupied. The predominant colours followed the heraldic rules of both Teodósio, blue and yellow, and Isabella, white and orange.
Court liveries
Alonso Sánchez Coello, The Royal Feast (King Philip II of Spain banqueting with his family and courtiers) (detail), 1579
© National Museum, Warsaw
'Passadores em T'
Find-out Fridays #37 | 03/07/2020
'Passadores em T' (T-fasteners), a term coined in 1955-56 by historian Pedro de Palol, were used to connect and fix clothing by acting as a belt fastener (buckle), attached either directly to the leather or to another metal piece. Doubts remain as to their function and chronology, despite some authors dating their appearance and use to the Ibero-Roman period and others, with rather more certainty, to the 15th and 16th centuries. It is, however, commonly accepted in literature that they are traditionally Iberian and therefore also appear in archaeological contexts in lands reached at the dawn of territorial expansion. 'Passadores em T' were metal pieces made using a mould and sometimes decorated by chisel. The general quality of these objects and the type of pictorial representations in which they have been identified, although scarce, lead us to believe that they were worn by men and were socially distinctive.
T-fastener
Archaeological works at Praça da Figueira, 2000
© Centro de Arqueologia de Lisboa, Lisbon (PF.00/R9-10[1316])
[in Rodrigo Banha da Silva, ‘Fecho de cinturão “em T”.’ In André Teixeira; A. Villada Paredes; Rodrigo Banha da Silva (eds.), Lisboa 1415 Ceuta: história de duas cidades/historia de dos ciudades. Ceuta/Lisboa: Ciudad Autonoma - Consejería de Educación y Cultura/Câmara Municipal de Lisboa, Direção Municipal de Cultura - Departamento de Património Cultural, 2015, p. 98.]
Patterns
Find-out Fridays #1 | 04/10/2019
Fashion patterns are the basis of clothing making, representing the first step of the process. First, it is necessary to take measurements from the person intended for the garment. These measurements are then transformed into a drawing creating a pattern that can be made for any part of the body. The functionality and rigor of the process has changed little since the 16th century. Usually made of paper or cardboard, patterns are still shaped in the same way – often for large-scale production – and continue to be used by tailors and modistes to make temporary chalk markings on the fabric before cutting and sewing.
Patterns
Juan de Alcega, Libro de Geometria, Pratica, y Traça [...], 1580
© Biblioteca Nacional de España, Madrid
Pins
Find-out Fridays #22 | 20/03/2020
The pin consisted of a stem that varied in size and function, with a sharp point at one end and a head at the other. Pins were important accessories during the 16th century, as they were used to fasten nearly every kind of clothing commonly worn during that period. They were used to join and close garments, to secure head coverings, pendants, amulets and decorative fabric elements on clothing, and to fasten shrouds around bodies before burial ceremonies. Pins were handmade by artisans who belonged to professional associations (guilds), and without much attention to decoration, given that, in reality, most of these items were not made to be seen.
Pin, 17th century
Archaeological remain
© Mosteiro de Santa Clara-a-Velha/Direção Regional de Cultura do Centro, Coimbra
Pomander
Find-out Fridays #33 | 05/06/2020
The name pomander comes from a corruption of the French expression ‘pomme d’ambre’ (apple of amber). It was one of the most common forms of a ‘pomme de senteur’ (scented apple), that is, a ball in the shape of an apple made of fragrant substances that gave off a pleasant perfume to disguise body odours and as an amulet to protect against pestilence. The scented ball was kept in a small case, also called a pomander, which was worn around the neck or attached to the belt by a chain. As well as aromatic plants, the scented balls were produced from amber, musk, benzoin, camphor, lavender, clove and other fragrant substances and oils. The containers were made from various materials, from woods to precious metals, depending on the social status of the wearer. Silver and gold were used in the most sumptuous examples, decorated with precious stones and exhibiting painstaking and delicate techniques of gold and silver work.
Pomander
Barthel Bruyn, the Younger, Portrait of a Woman of the Slosgin Family of Cologne (detail), 1557
© The Metropolitan Museum, New York
Ruff
Find-out Fridays #12 | 10/01/2020
A ruff was a type of collar that was common in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries, worn by men, woman and children. The ruff evolved from shirt collars, which grew and became more voluminous around the neck. Although various configurations existed, the ruff was essentially a series of straight strips of fabric, brought together in cartridge pleats and fixed to a fabric band that went around the neck. It could be decorated with embroidery, feathers or lace, then shaped using starch (a viscous substance of vegetable origin that provided stiffness). Over time, it became a symbol of wealth and social status, as it was associated with a noble posture and was mainly worn by members of the social and economic elite.
Ruff
Frans Pourbus, the Younger, Isabel Clara Eugenia of Spain, Archiduchesse of Austria (detail), 17th century
© Groeningemuseum, Bruges
Shirt
Find-out Fridays #2 | 11/10/2019
The shirt, worn next to the skin, was the first modern piece of so-called ‘underwear’. It was common to both sexes (female: smock; male: shirt) and to all social classes, and was used in almost the whole of Europe. The shirt was formed liked a tunic, almost always reaching the knees, and could be made from a variety of fabrics, normally white linen, with a simple cut and shape, sometimes showing decorative or embroidered motifs on the collar and sleeves. The quality of the fabric and tailoring distinguished the socio-economic level of the person wearing it. At a time when the naked body was never seen, the shirt functioned as a second skin, always the last item of clothing to be removed and the first to be put on, as confirmed by some 16th-century descriptions.
Smock
Italy, late 16th century
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Slashing
Find-out Fridays #3 | 18/10/2019
Slashing involved making cuts into fabric at different points on the item of clothing. In some cases, they merely allowed a glimpse of the sumptuous lining, while in others they created real decorative patterns, under which white underwear could be seen and emphasised, particularly the shirt. Slashing visually marked the fashion of the 16th century and, as well as showing the quality and different techniques used in manufacturing shirts and adornments, they highlighted the colour contrast, highly prized by the aristocracy.
Slashed sleeves
Joos van Cleve, Portrait of Eleanor of Austria (detail), 1530
© Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon
Stays
Find-out Fridays #30 | 15/05/2020
There are very few references to female underwear in the documentation of the early modern period and women, when depicted in intimate situations, almost always appear wearing a smock. Archaeological discoveries have shown that the forms and uses of intimate garments have largely remained the same over the last 500 years, but stays (known in Portuguese as corpinho or corpesito, meaning little body) evolved over time, with increasingly complex functions and more diverse forms, until they transformed into corsets. Stays could be long or short, and were initially undergarments that protected the chest and waist, with or without sleeves attached. Throughout the late Middle Ages and early modern period, they were used to define the silhouette, flattening the chest and/or slimming the waist – becoming more rigid and laced all the way up, in front or behind – thus helping define and alter the shapes that dictated the fashion for the female torso.
Stays, 1603
Worn by the funeral effigy of Queen Elizabeth I
© Westminster Abbey, London
Thimble
Find-out Fridays #27 | 24/04/2020
A thimble is a cup-shaped structure worn on the fingers during sewing, offering protection and used to push the needle. The most common thimbles are closed on top, but the earliest, probably from China and developed during the Han dynasty (206 BC–220 AD), were open and resembled a ring. The Silk Route, first, and the trade of Muslim caravans in the Middle East and Mediterranean later, helped spread thimbles throughout Asia and Europe. Some examples of thimbles, essentially functional objects, show motifs and elaborate decorative themes and the use of precious metals and noble materials in their manufacture, reproducing aspects of the visual culture of the early modern period and serving as objects of prestige.
Sara Reigersberg wedding thimble
Silver, 16th century
© Zeeuws Museum, Middelburg (The Netherlands)
Watch
Find-out Fridays #39 | 17/07/2020
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Clocks in general are instruments that measure the passage of time and they have been used since ancient times. Watches, however, as devices designed to be carried by a person, were only developed in the late 15th/early 16th century in Italy and, by the middle of the 16th century, mastery of the mechanism allowed for their incorporation in small-sized pieces of jewellery and even rings. Devised in a variety of shapes and for different cases, watches were small and light, so that they could be easily worn on a strap around the neck, attached to clothing by different instruments with clasps, metals or precious stones, or incorporated into jewellery. In reality, during the early modern period, watches were not always used to provide accurate information about the hour of the day or the passage of time, serving more than anything as a wardrobe accessory and a symbol of the social, financial and cultural status of the wearer. Pocket watches appeared later, with the development of pocketed waistcoats, well into the 17th century, and only in 1868 did the first wristwatch appear, designed for women and surrounded by gender controversy until the 20th century when it was also adopted by men.
Sara Reigersberg wedding thimble
Silver, 16th century
© Zeeuws Museum, Middelburg (The Netherlands)
