16th century clothing

1. 16th
century:
Clothing:
Henry VIII. c. 1539-1540
Philip II of Spain illustrates the sober way of fashion that was
common among the men of Spain. His daughter, Catalina Micaela wears a more
elaborate parure of necklace and belt, strings of pearls and rings.
A portrait of Francis I the contemporary of
Henry VIII and dressed in a velvet hat featuring hat jewelry in
the form of a badge and pearls and a bejeweled outfit.
These three portraits of Mary Wotton, Lady Guildenford on the left, her husband, Sir
Henry Guildenford in the middle and Jane Seymour, Henry VIII's third wife on the right
provide an insight of the fashion amongst English nobles at the end of the 1520's.

2. Jewellery:jewelry played a huge role in the opulent look of
middle-class and noble 16th century clothing for both men and
women. Portraits show many kinds of jewelry—necklaces,
carcanets or collars, bracelets, rings, brooches, pendants worn on
the clothing or in hair, beaded hat bands, rings, beaded aiglets,
and beaded girdles. In addition to jewelry, pearls, beads, and
jewels in settings were frequently sewn to clothing, hats, and
headdresses.
While some types of 16th century jewelry require serious
metalworking skills or advanced faux techniques in polymer clay
and other materials, a huge range of beautiful and authentic
jewelry can be made using basic beadwork techniques,
supplemented with carefully chosen costume jewelry. Jewelry styles
in the 16th century varied widely according to time and place.
Florence and Venice, for example, had very different clothing and jewelry styles. German
jewelry tended to be heavier and involve more metalwork (although garments could be
heavily embroidered with beads). English jewelry evolved from heavy carcanets, necklaces,
and girdles made from set jewels and double strings of pearls to be more delicate, with
open collars and necklaces made by stringing small beads in networks and other designs.
Pendant of Venus and Cupid Astride a Sea Monster c. 1580, Italian or German,
Metropolitan Museum of art
Anne Boleyn, Queen Consort of Henry VIII of England,
1533-36
Gold earring from Mycenae, 16th century BC
Ancient Greek jewellery from 300 BC

3. `Xin' Shape Jewellery from Ming Dynasty
Tombs(china ), (1368–1644)
Box
1630s-1640s
Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford and 1st Duke of
Somerset, c1540's
Detail of rings worn by Mary Nevill or Neville, Baroness
Dacre, in a double portrait with her son Gregory Fiennes, 10th
Baron Dacre

4. Charles IX of France by Francois Clouet Anna d'Este, post 1550
Jeanne d'Albret, Queen of France and Navarre, 1570,
Francois Clouet
Footwear
Men's shoes c. 1600
Elizabeth I's shoes, 1592

5. Fashionable shoes for men and women were similar, with a flat one-piece sole and rounded toes. Shoes were fastened with ribbons, laces or simply slipped
on. Thick-soled pattens were worn over delicate indoor shoes to protect them from the muck of the streets. A variant on the patten popular in Venice was
thechopine – a platform-soled mule that raised the wearer sometimes as high as two feet off the ground
Gerard Ter Borch: Man in Black, c. 1673. Paris, Louvre. In this portrait, one can see the large stiff bow that dominated men�s footwear of the era, as well as the wooden stacked heel.s
The poulaine, the shoe with long pointed toes of the previous period had fallen out of fashion. It is possible that the end of the poulaine was
foretold by episodes such as the death of Duke Leopold III of Austria. At the beginning of this period, the slipper shoes of the late Gothic period
reappeared without the exaggerated toes. These shoes resembled modern ballet slippers in many respects. It would not take long before the
toes of these shoes became wider and square. The shoes, which are said to have developed because Charles VIII had six toes on one foot,
were called �duck-billed� because of their width at the toe.
The chopine, another piece of footwear with a raised sole was introduced to Europe in this period. Though it is difficult to see shoes under the
long gowns of the period, we do know that women�s footwear was usually a soft slipper. They were made of delicate fabrics such as brocade,
silk, or embroidered leather, none of which were waterproofed.

6. Madame Pompadour, 1755. Maurice-Quentin de La Tour. An excellent example of women's dress from early in this period. Notice the delicate heels on her shoes.
Colors:
Bristol Red: Red used for garments.
Russet: 1512, Reddish brown or grey worn by countrymen.
Ash: 1518, Used for gowns and kirtles.
Rat's Colour: 1518, Dull grey, worn by poor people.
The following colors were the only colours made in England, during one time in the year 1522 by the order of King Edward VI.
Scarlet: Red
Crimson: Red
Murrey: Mulberry colour
Sheep's Colour: Natural
Puke: Dirty Brown
Orange-Tawney: Worn often in plays.
Watchet: Blue
Lion's Colour: Tawney, yellowish tan
Marble, Sad New Colour, Motley, and Iron Grey were also documented on the list, but are in need of more research.
This is a group of King Edward's VI favorite colors, all from 1547-53:
Incarnate: Red
Carnation: Resembling the colour Raw Flesh
Blod, Turkey, and Sea-Water are color names documented in need of more research.

7. This is a group of Mary Tudor's favorite color's names used in 1554:
Ruby, Crane, and Old Medley are documented and in need of more research.
Venetian colore, or color, is admired for its sheer brilliance and bravado. Artists, calledfigurers, were part of a larger industry of color that thrived in Venice. Dyers,
glassmakers, tailors, and decorators of furniture and ceramics all employed bright colors
Elizabeth favoured darker colours
17th
century:
Clothing:
• Louis XIV: King of France 1643-1715
• He sent dolls to every European court, sow they would know about Paris fashions.
• French monarchy and makes ankle-length trousers fashionable attire for all men.
• Although the clothing of the seventeenth century required rich, textured fabrics and elegant trim, the overall trend was toward
softness and comfort.
• Breeches remained the most common form of legwear formen in the seventeenth century
• Muffs, wigs, petticoats are used

8. The purpose of the bustle, worn
underneath the back of the skirt,
was to add fullness or shape, and
it was often used in combination
with farthingales, stiff hooped
underskirts.
•

9. The falling band was a neck
decoration made of silk or linen
that fastened at the neck and was
draped over the shoulders, chest,
and back.
A long coat worn over a shirt and
vest, the justaucorps was one of
the most common overgarments
worn by men during the
seventeenth century.
Jwellery:
 Décolletés return.
 More widespread use of faceted gemstones becoming the focus of the piece.
 Linear necklaces with closed collets.
 Short bow motif neclaces.
Most important were pearl necklaces.

10. Seventeenth Century
Spanish Gold, Enamel and
Green Glass Necklace.
Victoria & Albert Museum Collection.
Bow Necklace,
Enamel, Table-Cut
Diamonds, Pearls
and Sapphires.
c.1660, Italy.
Enamel, Table-Cut
Crystal and Pearl
Necklace. c.1600,
Italy.
Italian Gold, Enamel, Emerald and
Pearl Necklace c.1620, Sicily.
Enamel Floral Necklace, Table-Cut
Emeralds and Pearls.
c.1666-1669.
Footwear:
Throughout the last half of the
seventeenth century, small buckles
were used to fasten shoes. The
buckles were either worn alone or
were accompanied by large
ribbon bows.
European woman ice skating in
red ice skates. As ice skating
became a popular winter activity
in the seventeenth century, skates
had evolved from extremely
primitive foot coverings to sleekly
designed footwear
The heel of seventeenth-century shoes developed into an
arched sole with a large square-based heel. At the beginning of the
century, heels were quite low, but soon grew to two or three inches
in height.
The French court of Louis XIV (reigned 1643–1715) popularized
red leather heels in the 1650s.
Boots
One of the most important fashion trendsetters during the

11. seventeenth century was the cavalier, or military horseman.
During the seventeenth
century, shoes began to fasten with ribbons and buckles.
The toes of shoes changed from being round to square, and sometimes
forked, a style that featured a squared toe with slightly elongated
corner points.
18th
century:
Clothing:

12. • Marie Antoinette: Queen of France 1775-1793
• Used paste to whiten and stiffen her hair to extreme heights.
• Excessive fashion
In the eighteenth century, English
tailors triggered a trend toward
well-made, somber-colored clothes
for men and more severe fashions
• for women.

13. Typical women’s dress of the
eighteenth century included
brightly colored fabric with bold
floral and striped designs and
• layers of ruffles, bows, and lace.
At the beginning of the eighteenth
century, men wore justaucorps,
collarless coats that reached the
calf. By the end of the century,
the coat was shortened to just
below the hips.

14. The corset, a tightly fastened body
suit, was designed to push up or
flatten a woman’s breasts, or to
hug her waist until her figure
assumed an “hourglass” shape.
Woman wearing a polonaise style
dress, which featured an overskirt
with three bunched swags that
gave the hips the impression of
width and displayed the petticoat
underneath.

15. Made of rich fabrics and loaded
with frilly decoration, the robe à
la française was worn by only the
wealthiest of women.
Jwellery:
Amethyst, Crystal and Gold
Necklace
c.18th Century.
Opaline Paste and Silver
Necklace
c.1760..
Portuguese White Topaz
Necklet
c.1780-1800.
Enamel, Marcasite and
Silver Necklace
c. 1730..
Amethyst Riviere with Silver
Collets and Gold Backings..

16. Diamonds were the premier gem of the first half of the eighteenth century. Diamonds were set in silver with closed backs until
mid-century when open back settings came on the scene. Flowers and bows were the prevalent theme and parures were all the
rage with a magnificent necklace as the centerpiece. Cameos were employed in jewelry making at unprecedented levels. They
could be found in tiaras, necklaces, brooches, bracelets, rings, virtually every type of jewelry and accessoire imaginable.
During the latter half of the eighteenth century colored stones came back into style. Rivières linked together long lines of
individually set stones, sometimes diamonds, but often colored stones. The popularity of the rivière has never been seriously
challenged; a classic on into the twenty-first century.
 Deep décolleté, short necklaces worn tightly around the neck.
 Wide gem-set bands, sometimes with a bow or cross pendant.
 En Esclavage – openwork band suspending festoons and pedants.
 Pendants were detachable for versatility.
 Necklaces were tied in elaborate bows at the back by ribbons run through looped terminals. The use of ribbons made necklace
lengths variable/adjustible.
 Rivière – line of gemstones (usually graduated) in plain collets. Sometimes suspending a large diamond pendant.
 Daytime necklaces were less precious, nighttime was reserved for diamonds.
 Silver mounts with closed backs for diamonds and gold mounts for colored gems.
Foil lining provided uniform coloring for gemstones.
 Gold backings for silver necklaces to prevent tarnish on skin.
 Open backed collets.
Metal spring ring clasps began to replace ribbons for closures.
Footwear:
By the eighteenth century, some men wore shoes with
six-inch heels, which probably made walking without a cane impossible.
Heels were made of stacked pieces of leather or blocks of
wood.
Women wore high-heeled shoes made of colorful silk or delicate
leather, sometimes decorated with gold and silver lace and braid.

17. The increasing popularity of
horseracing triggered a fashion
for jockey boots in the mideighteenth
century, and young
men began wearing them for
everyday wear.
The large buckles and elaborate patterned
silk shoes of earlier days were replaced with simple, plain
flat-soled slippers. Slippers were made of thin kid, the skin of a baby
goat, or cloth. The toes of slippers were either pointed or rounded,
and the throat of the shoe, or the opening at the top of the foot,
was cut into a U or V shape.
Milanese chopines, 16th century, on loan from Castello Sforzesco, Milan, Italy
These chopines are typically Italian in design. Their bases are of carved pine, tapering in the middle and
flaring at the base to provide greater stability and are covered in white kid. The uppers are decorated
with cutwork in patterns reminiscent of lace from the same period.

18. Venetian chopines, 16th century, on loan from Museo Palazzo Mocenigo, Venice, Italy
The tallest chopines come from Venice. Some, such as this pair, have pedestals measuring
over 50 cm in height. These chopines corroborate the visual and textual evidence suggesting
that some women actually wore chopines of such towering heights. This pair has been
conserved for this exhibition but will not be allowed to travel again.
Shoes, Swedish, 17th century, on loan from Skokloster Castle, Sweden
The architecture of this shoe is highly idiosyncratic. The shoemaker made a sole by combining
elements of a chopine with a high heel and he made an upper that combines a shoe and a
mule. It seems that the shoemaker was attempting to merge the extreme elevation offered by
the chopine with the up-to-the-minute fashion of high heels. The resultant shoes are a
remarkable statement of ostentatious display.
Copyright © Collection of Skokloster Castle, Sweden (Photo: Göran Schmidt)

19. Boots, Swedish, c.1655, on loan from Livrustkammaren, Stockholm, Sweden
When heels debuted in Western fashion at the end of the 16th century, men eagerly embraced
them as signifiers of status. This pair of jackboots is thought to have been worn by the
Swedish King Karl X Gustav and features red-painted, stacked-leather heels and sharply
squared toes fashionable in the middle of the 17th century. The boot cuffs were worn pulled
up over the knees for protection when riding.
Livrustkammaren/The Royal Armoury, Sweden (Photo: Göran Schmidt)
Slap-sole shoes, possibly Italian, c. 1630-40, on loan from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston,
MA, USA
This pair of slap-sole shoes was embellished with straw appliqué. The “mule” portion of the
shoe, including the edge of its sole, is heavily embellished suggesting that this pair was not
designed for sustained wear out-of-doors. The fashion for slap-soles began with a mule and a
heeled shoe being joined together.
Photograph © 2009 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Slap-sole shoes, probably Italian, mid-17th century, from the collection of the Bata Shoe
Museum, Toronto, Canada
These mid-17th century slap-sole shoes were once the property of the descendents of Frances
Walsingham, whose secret marriage to Robert Devereux, the last favourite of Queen Elizabeth
I, contributed to his downfall. They may have been a gift to one of her family members and
reflect the fashion of attenuated toes in the 1660s. Visual evidence of the origin of the slap-
sole, which was originally a mule and a heeled shoe joined together, has almost disappeared
in this late version of the style. The mule is no longer a structural component of these shoes
but is instead simply indicated through outlining in decorative braid.
Photograph © 2009 Bata Shoe Museum, Toronto

20. Slap-sole shoe, English, mid 17th century, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto
By the second half of the 17th century, slap-soles had become an exclusively female form of
footwear. Many of these later examples were highly embellished or made using delicate
materials such as silk to be worn as extravagant fashion statements. This unadorned pair,
however, suggests that some slap-soles were also designed for more practical, everyday
wear.
With permission of The Royal Ontario Museum © ROM
Shoes with Pattens 1740, British, Made of silk, linen, and leather ~~~~~ Pattens were worn outdoors over a normal shoe, held in place by leather or cloth
bands, with a wooden or later wood and metal sole. Pattens functioned to elevate the foot above the mud and dirt of the street, in a period when road and
urban paving was minimal. the Met

21. Women's shoes, c.1760-1775, Netherlands, pleated cream silk, silver embellishments, cow leather, goat leather, linen. The heel, covered with goatskin, is
square cut and passes under the shank and has a brown leather edge. Brown cow leather sole with white stitching under the shank. Insole also of goatskin.
No right or left, both shoes have the same lasts. RIjksmuseum
Who was Matthaeus Schwarz?
 Born in Augsburg in 1497
 Father Ulrich Schwarz was a wine merchant who married three times
 Schwarz had 37 siblings
 Trained as an accountant in Italy
 Married aged 41 and had three children
 Ennobled in 1541
 Died in 1574 aged 77

22. On his 41st birthday Schwarz was painted from behind wearing a thick cloak
he had made for his wedding. Another showed him in black to mark the Moritz of Saxony's death, roses symbolising what he saw as a victory for Catholicism.

23. The portraits covered key moments of Schwarz's life, including his father's

24. death when he was depicted in four types of mourning dress (right). He was also captured wearing an intricate doublet with 4,800 small cuts called "pinks"
(left).
Schwarz's first employer Jacob Fugger the Rich (depicted left in black
clothing), is the only other person to feature as a life-size adult figure in the paintings. Researchers recreated the red and yellow outfit on the right (see video
above)
"What he produced is one of the most unique documents ever created in the history of fashion - it is a treasure trove of
information," says Dr Ulinka Rublack, reader in Early Modern European History at the University of Cambridge and
author of Dressing Up: Cultural identity in Renaissance Europe."
The book is kept in a small museum in Braunschweig, Germany. It has not been widely studied until now and Schwarz
himself has been viewed by historians as a bit of a curiosity, says Rublack, who rediscovered the book.
Continue reading the main story
Who was Matthaeus Schwarz?

25.  Born in Augsburg in 1497
 Father Ulrich Schwarz was a wine merchant who married three times
 Schwarz had 37 siblings
 Trained as an accountant in Italy
 Married aged 41 and had three children
 Ennobled in 1541
 Died in 1574 aged 77
 Was the Renaissance a myth?
 Explore the BBC's fashion archive
She says he was in fact an innovator who pushed style boundaries. His book also challenges established ideas about
historical fashion, particularly that only the very rich were stylish.
Schwarz was the head accountant for the Fugger family, one of the most important and wealthy German merchant and
banking families at the time.
He started to record his appearance in 1520, initially commissioning 36 images to retrospectively cover his appearance
from childhood up until the age of 23. Over four decades he commissioned a total of 137 original watercolour images of
his outfits, painted by three principal artists.
He continued until he was 63 and then had the pages bound, creating what became known as the Schwarz Book of
Clothes.
What makes Schwarz so remarkable is that he was one of the first people to be interested in fashion as a cultural
phenomenon, says Rublack.

26. "At the time wealthy Germans were serious about dressing properly but considered it foolish to be into fashion in its own
right."
Schwarz was an innovator, playing with his style and exploring new cuts, colours, fabrics and details. He had fun with
clothes.
'Pinking'
It wasn't always easy. During his lifetime there were strict social conventions and rules surrounding clothes. Sumptuary
laws, made for the purpose of restraining luxury or extravagance, stipulated the dress and jewellery appropriate for a
person's rank. So while he pushed boundaries, there were lines he had to be careful not to cross.
Continue reading the main story
Schwarz and the democracy of fashion
Schwarz was a full-time employee. Yet he spent much of his income on dress.
Additional evidence tells us that a broader spectrum of urban and rural people was fascinated by clothes. Even if they were only able to afford a yellow
sleeve, they still partook in a new world of fashion and defended their right to dress.
We have to re-imagine this period in different colours and question influential arguments that fashion only democratised in the 20th Century, or that the period
before the 18th Century presented a drab sartorial world outside royal courts.
Then as now people used clothes to express values and emotions. That is why clothes could already become storehouses of fantasies, aspirations and
anxieties. A man like Schwarz confronted male competition, his body shape and age through charting appearances. He also simply loved the possibilities of
new accessories, materials, cuts and makes.
The French sociologist Lipovetsky sees fashion as an engine of Western modernity since the Middle Ages because it exploded tradition, encouraged self-
determination, individual dignity, and opinion making. Dress certainly has been an important historical force for much longer than we usually concede.
Ulinka Rublack, author of Dressing Up: Cultural identity in Renaissance Europe

27.  Discover more about history
An employee was definitely not allowed to dress more extravagantly than his or her employer and often forbidden from
wearing certain items. For Schwarz there was a further complication, his extremely wealthy employers were worried
about being seen as excessively rich and were consciously trying to dress down, says Rublack. He had to be clever and
he was.
"If sumptuary laws banned a certain item of clothing or accessory he would push a different way," says Maria Hayward, a
professor of Early Modern European history at the University of Southampton who specialises in textiles and clothing.
"If fancy hose were forbidden for example, he might have gone for fancy sleeves instead."
He went to great lengths to create outfits. Unlike today there were no luxury brands he could buy off the peg.
Working for important merchants he had access to fine materials and the contacts to get whatever else he needed. He
would employ skilled craftspeople, says Jenny Tiramani, theatre designer and principal of the School of Historical Dress.
Everything would have been done by hand as the sewing machine hadn't been invented.
Schwarz also went to great expense. He wasn't rich but had a good income and he chose to spend most of it on his
appearance.
Many of his outfits were remarkably elaborate. One watercolour painted just after his 26th birthday shows him in a
spectacular white hose - clothing for the legs and lower body - and doublet - a fitted garment worn on the upper body that
was tied to the hose around the waist (outfit pictured in slideshow).
At the time it was fashionable to "pink" clothes. This was a technique where a sharp chisel was used to slice through
material creating a slash. Notes made by Schwarz reveal his doublet had a staggering 4,800 small pinks.
The colours he wore and the accessories often had specific meaning and significance. White, used for this particular
outfit, represented faith and humility.
Intent and idealisation
He would diet to get the fashionable body shape of the time and dressing wasn't a quick or easy affair either. He would
have needed servants to help him and often they would have sewn him into his clothes.
Continue reading the main story

28. Colour, accessories and meaning
 Green - Quest for luck
 Yellow and red - Happiness
 White - Faith and humility
 Black - Constancy and sombreness
 Ostrich feathers - male courage
 Green heart-shaped bag (see above) - quest for love
 Lute (see above) - intelligence and artistic sensibility
Source: Dressing Up: Cultural identity in Renaissance Europe
 The opulence of the Renaissance
 Try our historical dress game
"A lot of time was spent arranging garments so everything looked perfect," says Tiramani. "Often a servant would have
gone out with him to make sure the outfit was properly arranged at all times."
Schwarz didn't only use clothes to look good. He also used them for specific social or political reasons, from getting a
promotion to courtship. He had an elaborate red and yellow outfit - recreated by Tiramani in the video above - made for

29. the return of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V to Germany. This was after a nine-year period during which many parts
of the country had turned to Protestant faiths.
He chose the colours as they were associated with happiness and his aim was to show his allegiance to Catholicism and
to the emperor, says Rublack. It worked and he was ennobled in 1541. It was a huge leap in social status.
"It's easy to dismiss Schwarz as a bit of a dandy in his brightly coloured clothes," says Hayward. "But he used clothes in
a very clever way to assert lots of things about himself. His outfits weren't just what he felt like wearing, they had meaning
and intent."
But there is another reason Schwarz's book is so groundbreaking, say historians. He included two naked images of
himself, one from the back and one from the front. He was 29 when they were painted.
"At the time painting nudes in a secular context was extremely rare, they were usually painted in a Biblical and classical
context," says Rublack. "There were no higher principles applied when it came to Schwarz's nudes, they simply
documented what he looked like without any clothes on."
There was no attempt to make himself look better, which was almost unheard of at the time. "I had become fat and
large," he himself notes under the images. He also had a painting done of himself while he was recovering from a stroke,
aged 52. Another first, historians believe.
Vanity
In a modern world where every facet of life is documented it's hard to grasp how different this true representation was.
Continue reading the main story
Getting an outfit made

30.  Even the most elaborate outfits would have taken just a week to make
 The availability of cheap labour meant lots of people could work on one outfit
 Workers' wages would only have made up roughly 5% of the final bill
 Materials were the biggest expense and getting them the biggest problem
 Germany's central location in Europe meant sourcing materials would have been easier for Schwarz
Source: Professor Maria Hayward
 Find out more about historical dress
"His honesty is so striking and unusual," says Rublack. "People would use paintings to project a certain image of
themselves but Schwarz's paintings were not idealised. He was remarkably honest about the course of life and getting
old, he showed what you couldn't control as well as what you could."
He stopped recording his outfits aged 67. He tried to persuade his son to continue the project. Veit Konrad Schwarz
commissioned 41 images of his own but didn't add any more after the age of 19.
Crucially for Rublack, the book challenges a common school of thought that fashion only became available to everyone in
the 18th Century.
"The book changes our sense of looking at the past," she says. "It shows that fashion cannot be considered a modern
phenomenon and spread down from the top social elites as early as the Renaissance."

31. Tiramani agrees. "It challenges the cliche that everyone who didn't attend at a royal court went around dressed in grey
rags and sack cloth."
Exactly why Schwarz embarked on his book of fashion remains a mystery. It could have been purely a vanity project or
he may have wanted to hand down a record of contemporary fashion at the time.
He didn't publish it but he didn't hide it either, showing it to people of his own choice. After his death the book was
handed down through the family and eventually sold. Two copies were made but the original is now in the Herzog Anton
Ulrich-Museum in Braunschweig.
"It's possible he wasn't the only person creating such books but his was the only one to survive, we simply don't know,"
says Tiramani. "But whatever his reason it's not something you'd expect an accountant to do - then or now."