Czerwona_Ksiazeczka_SiemowitaEN.pdf

8/18/2019 Czerwona_Ksiazeczka_SiemowitaEN.pdf

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Red Booklet II

Introduction to the reconstruction of the costume

Reconstructing dresses of the bygone era we must rely on historical sources. The most reliable, are of

course clothes preserved to our days, which we can, which we can freely examine and take to pieces.Unfortunately, the fabric does not stand up well to the passage of time, therefore from the late iddle

!ges a little survived to our times. "e therefore need to supplement our knowledge both with

iconography as well as written sources.

In the art of the turn of the #$th and #%th century there are plenty of depictions, which may become

useful in reconstruction of the mediaeval clothing. Unfortunately there also is a lot of confusion and

traps. &irstly, all depictions mainly show the higher society 'founders and their entourage(. )econdly the

artists of this period often simplified the look of the clothing* there also was a custom of borrowing

whole compositions or types of presentations from other artists 'famous medieval patterns(. Thirdly,

many characters seen in the artistic works of paintings and sculptures, are mocking figures, people form

foreign lands dressed in exotic dress, etc. )o we have to be careful and learn as much as possible aboutthe presentation we use. Best is to find other works of art, depicting the element of our interest. Thus we

shall minimi+e the possibility of blunder.

!nother very useful source are the documents from the era. -ourt rotas, last wills, bills as well as

other written texts, provide us with names, materials, and the value of the costumes worn then.

Unfortunately very rarely there are descriptions of the appearance of individual items of clothing, and

that forces us to speculate, which name corresponds to a certain fashion. )o in order to obtain an overall

picture of clothes worn in the period of our interest, we connect these three types of sources and try to

draw conclusions. This is not an easy task and can often lead to conflicting conclusions, but this is the

specifics of this field of research

The assumption of the Red Booklet/

"ork presented here, is a compilation of reflections of other old material culture researchers as well as

our interpretation of the sources. 0owever there are many uncertainties and issues not fully explained.

)o while reading it must be remembered that the Red Booklet is not unerring. )ince this is not a dead

area of science, and costumology is constantly developing, together with new archaeological findings,

researches as well as publications, some changes might be introduced into this booklet in future1

It was not written with the idea to create a comprehensive scientific work* it was written to create2 firstly

introduction for people wanting to get ac3uainted with the sub4ect, and, secondly2 the principles and

minimum re3uirements for 5uke )iemovit6s Banner . There are many issues that were not addressed,since this work does not aim at completeness of the sub4ect... Therefore, with all our hearts we are open

to discussion on items of clothing that are not in the text, as well as ours, presented in the interpretation.

"e also assure, that we do not restrict anyone to use only items of clothing presented here,, if anyone

wants to reconstruct a part of the dress the book does not include, one can do so,

provided, that its existence will be proved, based on relevant sources 'dissertations, photographs of

exhibits, the art of the era, etc.(.7lease treat this text as an introduction only, to learn more we suggest

looking up the bibliography given at the end of the text.

The dating remains unchanged, still in force is the time8interval #9:; #$#;. In order to illustrate the

various items of clothing sometimes pictures appear might be a little later or earlier* not to exceed, say,

#9


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Shoes

It is often said that the shoes are the basis for every good reconstruction of dress. Surely this is an

important element that should be done very exactly, with care for every possible detail. To properly

restore the old shoes, a large professional knowledge is required as well as a detailed analysis of

previously used techniques. Luckily thanks to the archaeological research we have pretty much

information on the work of the medieval shoemakers.

nlike fabric, leather does not decay so rapidly and to our times there remained relatively a widevariety of copies of medieval shoes, and scraps. Their construction is therefore based mainly on the

authentic relics. !e use iconography mainly in order to choose appropriate cut shoes to the rest of the

outfit.

To match shoes with the dress one question should be answered" representative of what social class

I#m going to play$ The answer will be crucial to the proper selection of footwear% for example, if I

want to be a knight, it will not be fitting for me to wear shoes known from the iconography of the

shepherd.... &ot because it was the worse kind of shoes, but because in the era of the 'iddle (ges

attribution to a particular social group was almost irreversible and it was often associated with wearing

a particular dress code. It usually confined to how wealthy one was, and what he could afford.

It has to be added that footwear first of all had to fulfill some specific functions. )ne usually hadseveral types of shoes * worn depending on occasion. +or example, a nobleman at a dukes court would

dress fashionably, e.g. in ornamented long*toed poulaines, or chausseschausses with full foot and sole.

The same knight setting off to war or hunting, would rather wear comfortable shoes and suitable for

riding. It is worth remembering, while preparing for the reconstruction

Design

The footwear consisted of an upper and sole. sually a heel was sewn in, and leather -seal- called

Otok / to strengthen the construction and protect it against wear off too fast. pper is covering the

upper part of foot. It was usually made of full grain calfskin, rarely goats, horse, deer, sheep and even

a dogs. The sole was made of sole calfskin. 0igskin was not used, because it leaked and was difficult

in processing. The upper was sewn to the sole with linen or hemp twine. Shoes were sewn on the leftside on the last. (fter sewing the shoe was soaked and then turned right*side*out, what hid the seam

and protracted its existence. The problem appeared with long toed shoes, therefore, the fifteenth

century shoemakers often did not stitched them to the end, or sewn them only after turning right*side*

out. Sometimes a special stitch was added to reinforce the shoe frame. 1ifferent shoe styles were worn

2 from very low, to the ankle, through knee*high boots, to high, reaching up to the groin. The latter had

to be fastened on the outer side of leg * these are typical riding boots.

The footwear does not necessarily have to be pointed, although it may. The long toe was a trend within

both lower and higher classes in the late fourteenth and late fifteenth century. There are historical

descriptions of the knights, cutting the log toed shoes to escape safely and sound from the battlefield.

3)ne can kill himself stumbling over his own shoes.4 Slender shapes were an expression of elegance,

so chic shoes should be tailored to the foot. 5xcavations provide a less tailored, high boots with loose

top probably worn by the lower class 3il.664/.

Soles should be clearly distinguished * left and right. Lacing of the footwear should not occur at the

outer side of the calf except are the horse riding boots, reaching up to the knee/ or on the (chilles

tendon. The shoe can be laced in front or on the inside of the leg. Shoe can also be buckled with

one or several buckles. (n alternative to leather shoes, were wool chausses with sewn on soles. Such a

solution was very popular at that time, as evidenced by the iconography -7randes 8hroniques de

+rance-, or different versions of the -The Hours of the Duke of Berry/. In an elegant dress most

frequently observed were 9ust chausses with a leather sole or very low shoes. )ften with pattens

3il.:,;,


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the field of medieval footwear, as well as publications on preserved shoes, discovered during

excavations in =o>obr?eg and London.

.6. @.

A.

B. C.

:. ;.


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very densely woven! to light and thin. It was possible to obtain different patterns *e.g. herringbone+! alsocolourful. $lthough the iconography does not confirm this! there is a suspicion that patterned wool *e.g. belts+could hale been very popular then.

&omestic wools were rather of mean #uality and usually not dyed *natural colours 6 shades of black! whites!greyish! brownish! etc.+. They belonged to the league of cheaper and simpler materials so they were used byless wealthy. etter #uality coloured cloth was imported to oland mostly from 'ilesia *a powerful producerof fabric since the ,1th century+! but also from %usatia! the 8etherlands and 9ermany. Through o)nan and

%esser oland! they spread widely around towns and villages of the olish 4ingdom. $s far as I know the prices of the dyed wool were so affordable that it was available among the village people; no to mention thenoblemen and merchants. It depended on the cloth #uality; we know that black cloth from russels wasimported on the order of :agiello’s court at the cost of ,!3 marks for an Ell.

(otton

(otton needed for the production of cotton textiles! was entirely imported from the East. This was not theeasiest material in processing! yet it #uickly con#uered the European market! in the late iddle $ges being acloth used by the poorer social classes. (otton and linen threads were linifices and fustianes? working in 4a)imier). 8ext mention about the makers of fustian comes from thetown registers of ,-@2. "ustian guilds also existed outside our western border.

In ,1A1


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fabrics and threads are mentioned in the accounting books of :agiello and /edwig’s court. 'uch material wasused for sewing and decorating garments for the courtiers and servants.

There are many different varieties of silk; as for the time of our concern I met velvet! satin! taffeta! damaskand (athay. In addition to the smooth fabric! very popular were patterned silks! which very often wereweaved with golden or silver threads. Out of the surviving patterned fabrics *mainly vestments+ most of themare Italian designs form the ,-th century. Often 'panish or Turkish ornamented fabrics can be found.

@.

"igure no @ shows several possible types of ornament.

It is worth mentioning that straps *ribbons+ were woven from silk threads. They were used to make veryornamented belts; those were used to ornament garments *I will develop this sub


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expensive+ I simply recommend caution when choosing the material for a costume. It is a good idea to checkhow others do it 6 and to check the colours obtained from plant dyes.

&yes

'ome problems appear when using the iconography. (olours used in painting *wall! book! altar! etc.+ are based on mineral dyes! #uite different from those used in dyeing *mostly organic+. "or example! blacktempera paint can be easily obtained from soot from charred wood. 7hen dying fabrics! this techni#ue isuseless! and the blacks are obtained in a lot more difficult way. 7hat we see form the art of the era! does nothave to finally give us the real look of the then colours of garment. It is good to see the existing relics of suchgarment.

8atural plant and animal dyes were used! such as the bark of birch! alder! oak! apple! barberry branches! gorsestems! tinctorial roseda! buckthorn berries! saffron flower! blueberry! onion shell and many others. This gavea range of natural colours of brown! gray! yellow! green. In addition special plants were grown = in order toobtain the dyes to dye clothes. adder *planted in 'ilesia+ gave a red colour *reddish+! but it was used toobtain purple. astel was imported from Thuringia and 'axony! and was used to obtain a whole scale of bluesand navy! as well as black! and was therefore very widely used! although difficult in use *import monopoli)ed

by Hwidnica+.

To obtain red colour mainly the larvae of the famous olish :une bug were used! massively exported to the7est from 4rakow and 'ilesia. "inally! there were also used! although much less fre#uently! dyes importedfrom the "ar East such as indigo *blue+ and the so=called ra)ilian tree? *ra)ilwood common in $sia+!giving a red brown colour. They were! however! expensive dyes and used less than those found in oland.

/ow did such mass of dyes relate to the real look of medieval garmentJ ItKs hard to say exactly! because of thescarcity of sources! but during the excavations in 9dansk and iLd)yr)ec) many pieces of material with verydifferent colours were discoveredM red! orange! yellow! yellow=green! black! shades of green! brown=black!violet! dark = violet.

The use of different techni#ues gave a very wide range of colours! so we assume that all colours can be usedexcept for very bright. Of course! best is to use hand=dyed fabrics! organic dyes! but this is rather a wishful

thinking.The choice of colours

The symbols of colours in the iddle $ges are #uite complicated and have a rich literature. The choice of thecolours depended on religious symbols! literature! fashion! celebrations! preferences! etc. 'o for the purpose of

basic reading and Ged ook again I refer to more specialist literature.

There are however few things which I want to mention.

Bery fashionable in the times of 9runwald was a sectional system. /alf of a certain element of a dress wasmade in one colour and the other half of it in the other. Often this is seen in case of chausses *np. one leg blue!the other white+ then top dresses and hoods Nil-!3.

7hen grand assiette are concerned *deeply sewn sleeves+ often sleeves are of different colour than the rest ofthe dress *np. green sleeves! the rest white+. Garely but it still this was done with normally sewn sleeves.

'eldom I find a popular in oland che#uered pattern where colours cross or complicate even more! like = leftleg black! right = red! left side of the doublet red! the right = black. It was not an unknown composition at thattime! but certainly not widely used. ore complicated systems of colours appear in the late ,3 th century! so Iwould advise not to exaggerate with the brightness of dress.


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1. -. 3. F.

P.

The colours were very boldly combined! giving a bit shocking combination *using complementary colourstogether.+ The lining was often contrasting to the rest of the garment.

9enerally before starting sewing the dress! have a glance at some pictures from the times of our concern! so asto gain a brief imagination about the colours of the times.

ichaQ Rambr)ycki


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Female clothing

Underwear

Under-tunic

The female under-tunic evolved together with dresses. Just as in the 13 th century it had a form of wideand loose clothing, in the 15th century it became much tailored to the body, with wide necline cut to

the sha!e of dress. "t was sewn from two tra!e#oids $ tightly fitting to the body. %ould have thin

stra!s, sewn or attached with a !in &as shown in Fig. 3 $ the stra!s were detachable for bathing', or

with long sleeves (il.1).

1. *. 3.

%hemise

Females also wore chemises $ sewn lie men+s. The female one, however, was longer, from mid-thigh

even to the nee. The necline was not very widely cut, so as to !rovide warmth.

Braies

"t seems logical that the females also wore some form of briefs. . There are some !resentations of

females in such underwear, but it is not clear whether those de!ictions are mocing or not, and whether

the !ictured women were regarded as immoral.

owever it is a fact that women $ had to handle their monthly !roblems in some way. "t is assumed

that in the 15th century women wore briefs, or !iece of cloth or a linen ta!e (il.).

"f briefs, they were sewn as men+s braies, however more tailored, so as to fulfill their function. The

brief legs $ were almost nee-long, and women rolled them on their thighs.


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. 5. .

osen

/omen+s hosen reached to the nee, under it they were tied with a fabric or leather garter &sometimes

with bucle'. osen were usually made from a /right cloth, but other colours were also found, also

cloth woven in different !atterns can be found (il.0). asiest is to sew the hosen $ basing on the men+shosen !attern. (il.2) &of course shorter'. /omen+s hosen always had a sole there is no !ossibility to

sew the hosen with a stirru!. For sha!e more tailored to the calf, some hosen were cut at the seam

above the anle, and fastened with a clas!. The e4am!le of medieval clas!s can be seen further below.

0. . 2.

16.

7resses8


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Female dresses evolved as nice a!!earance was re9uired from women. 7resses became narrower at

the to!, while the bottom was widened. :ores sewn from under the arm!it sha!ed the figure thans to

the additional seams, at the same time $ widening the bottom of the dress. "n addition in the front and

rear gores - a cut was made from the hi!s, into which a triangular !anel was sewn for even more

material at the bottom of the dress (il.11).

;t that time $ not now was the seam used today for modelling, it runs now through the centre of the

bust.

11.

For the convenience of !utting on and wearing - women


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1. 15.

The under dress was girdled with a belt, and to it tied there were indis!ensable bits and !ieces $ lie

money !ouch or eys. (il.13)

=ome dresses had short sleeves, to which a se!arate sleeve was !inned, often made from more

decorative material than the rest of the dress.

1.

To! 7resses

?ost of the worn to! dresses had the same basic sha!e and form, and only modified were sleeves,

neclines, and trimming thus maing the dress loo more decorated and more court lie.

The lower social classes wore to! dresses not much differing from the under dresses, without s!ecial

ornamentation, furs and modifications. (il. 10). =ome of the dresses had sleeves cut from the elbow, the

others had short sleeves with a decorative stri! of cloth or fur &called @dog+s tongueA' sewn to it it also

had flared sleeves, neclines were e4!anded onto the shoulders, fur trimming was added. There is a

great variety of the to! dresses.

=ome of them have a cut which enables easier access to the !ouch hung on the belt. ;lthough cuts loo

lie today


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10. 1. 12. *6 *1.

**. *3. *.

*5.

Bther form of women+s dress was the hou!!elande. ; dress, falling into many folds, girdled under bust

with an ornamented belt, was sewn from fragments of full circle and sur!rised with its volume. "n 15 th

century the hou!!elande was a very elegant otfit, with wide sleeves and high collar, u! to the ears.

=ome time later the collar was !laced on the shoulders, and the sleeves were narrowed on the hands $

forming a ind of the sac. ou!!lande very often was fastened under nec with fasteners &hoo and

eye'. "llustration 36 shows such a hoo found on :runwald fields.


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* *0 *.

*2. 36.

arlier surcot changed into corset fendu. "t is a wide dress, very rich and elegant, with wide cuts under

arm!its &devil+s windows'. They were trimmed with fur, richly embrodiered, with !recious accessories

and heavy belts.

31.


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Women’s Head Dresses

"n the ?iddle ;ges, it was necessary for married women to wear white headscarf . =uch was the

custom. owever its form varied, de!ending on the social status of a woman. Bf course $ so as not to

mae any mistae in reconstruction of a dress, it is best to a!!ly the head dress being illustrated

together with a dress.

;lways a!!ro!riate is a headscarf with a wim!le $ as seen on !ictures showing lower and u!!er social

classes. "t is characteri#ed by a band with fi4ed to it loosely hanging headscarf, sometimes hiding the

nec. Cicher headscarves were frilled &ruseler', most often seen with hou!!elands and corset fendues.

3*. 33. 3.

=traw hats were worn mainly by !easant women woring in the field. oods were worn by women of

nearly every social class $ and were to !rotect from the cold. /e now o!en hoods, or buttoned at the

front.

35. 3.

" a!!eal to ee! to the iconogra!hy when choosing the dress, and also to ee! to the !attern. 7o not

forget about the colours and do not forget the head dress. "f you consider the situation of the figure,

there is a great chance that the confusions might be avoided.


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;nd although everything loos so crooed $ have fun while com!leting your costume. "n the end $ we

are doing what we lie

>arbara %iuba


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Chausses and ways of wearing them

In the 1&th century $ loose chausses were worn $ tied to braies directly with a single strap. uch type is used

through the whole 1'th century! becoming slowly a domain of the poor (of such type are the chausses

found in 3er4olfsnes o.! il.10). They can be seen among the richer too.

. 10. 11.

bout the half of the 1' th century the 6short men’s fashion7 reaches its pea. 8acets ending on the buttocs

re9uired the chausses become longer so as to hide the braies (showing underwear was "ery much improper and

was critici:ed by moralists of the times). o in that time there were separate legs! reaching thighs and probably

e"en longer! partially hiding the buttocs. mong numerous depictions from that times it is hard to recognise

what is what! but analysing them logically both types can be found. Tae a close loo at the e*ecutioner at fig. 12!

with such a short 4acet! so as to at least partially hide braies! his chausses had to reach buttocs. uch chausses

were tied to braies! or to the belt of the braies! to the lower part of the clothes with leather straps! or wo"en wool

strings $ both "ariants should ha"e an aglet (I met only such made of metal $ bent into a cone).

12. 1&. 1'.

15. 1,.

;uring the e"olution of chausses! around 1'00! there appears also a 4oined model! with completely hidden

buttocs and a codpiece in front. In literature they appear sometimes as leg%pants. 3ere again we ha"e difficulties


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in finding appropriate iconography. It is worth remembering that if they were already in use $ they must ha"e

been a no"elty then! and were worn by dandies! so it is possible that they were tied to the lower side of a dress $

e.g. doublet.

1/. 1. 1. 21.

22. 2&.


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The ne*t e*ample is a sculpture by ;onatello! from 1'&0 showing


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There are many representations where a cord belt can be guessed! as in the figure of a peasant from The "er #ich

$ours of the %u&e of Berr (1'1&%1,) +il.2- or in the picture of the worer from the Boman Tacuinum (the

character does not wear pants! to which he could tie the chausses! and ne"ertheless they somehow hold on)

+il.2-.

ome would argue that suspending the chausses to the waist is a solution used by the low social classes and

outdated in #runwald times. 3owe"er from the accounts of the court of 8agiello and 3edwig! we now that the

ing commissioned a cobbler to do a reinforced cord belt. If this solution was good for the ing! I thin it wasalso good for his courtiers. Hf course it is possible that 8agiello ordered a belt for hanging plate chausses! and not

to tie fabric chausses! but as usual! e"ery stic has two ends so you ha"e to admit both possibilities.

To% &resses'

(refa#e

The top garment in the Giddle ges was the most important part of clothing. In the presentations from the then

times % persons show in underwear can be counted on the pro"erbial fingers of one hand and usually! they are

shown then in "ery intimate situations! at home! in bed or in moments of humiliation! they can be characters of

the con"icts or performing "ery hea"y physical wor (mowing! wrestling! etc.). o possessing a top garment

(whether it be the ;oublet! 8ac9uet! 3ouppelande or something else) is mandatory.

Naming

The "ariety of top garment is large! as e"eryone probably noticed while browsing medie"al iconography. There is

a mi* of different types of components such as slee"es! trimming! colour! etc. In fact! the only fair as a form of

classification of top garment would be di"iding them into loose and tight%fitting and e"en that is not so. In the

iconography of the late 1'th and 15th centuries! we often see copies! which can not 9ualify to any of these groups.

Gedie"al written sources concerning the dress code is an obstacle! rather than help! because there were no

uni"ersal terms defining precisely all types of clothing. ot to mention the fact that the same clothes could bear

completely different names in different regions.

It is "ery difficult howe"er to gi"e any outlines to persons sewing for the first time! without gi"ing more detailed

characteristics of the garment! or gi"ing up any naming! therefore I allowed myself to gi"e a more detailedclassification. I must underline that this is rather a ind of a con"entional compromise. The terminology comes

from literature! if anyone wishes to e*amine and further clarify the matter! at the end of the te*t IJ"e included a

bibliography! which I used.

Tight fitting garment

"ery tight fitting clothes fashion appeared in Kurope in the mid%fourteenth century. Their loo differed strongly

from the dominating long and loose cotte and surcote. There was a great "ariety of such suits! but they can be

characteri:ed in common? all are "ery much tailored to the body! ending at the height of the buttocs! or below

buttocs! and are usually sewn on padded bacing to gi"e the body a fashionable hourglass form$ Common were

a"so the )arying ty%es of fastening'

1) single! long string tied in the ladder. This re9uires a dense arrangement of holes *i"$+, - e.am%"e/$The tying !y %airs of stra%s %"a#ed in a #ertain distan#e is a mu#h "ater in)ention$

2) uttons! metal cast (follow the historical patterns such as @ig. &1)! or tin solder material stitched into small

ball L dis! or made of wood and co"ered with material

&) fter some thought! it would add hoosM there is a chance that this type of fastener was already used. t

the same time! it is a slightly risy matter! as anyone wants to be sure itJs better to choose the

buttonsLstring. @or e*ample! a hoo found at #runwald *i"$+0/


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') &0. &1. &2.

Tight fitting fashion was "ery popular throughout the whole 1'th century and at the beginning of the 15thcentury. It

was worn mainly by the nobility but the poorer could afford it too (although it was ob"iously more e*pensi"e than

typical loose tunics).

In this category there are a lot of different costumes! which are really "ery hard to be distinguished. Kspecially

since as I wrote! naming is so terribly ine*act.

@or e*ample! in @rench and Knglish publications! the word doublet! pourpoint and gippon are used

interchangeably! for naming the tight! tailored clothing! with the possibility of suspending (or not) chausses. The

distinction used in the milieu for? pourpoint N


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&&. &'. &5. &,.

&/. &. &.

'0.

Olease pay attention to how much all this description differs from dresses we used till now and which we usually

called doublets$ Not %added woo""en short 1a#2et with )ery short f"a%s to tie the #hausses a%%ear in

Euro%ean art for good from #$a$ ha"f of the 34 th #entury$ &ou!"ets from the !rea2 of 35th and 34th #enturies

are "onger and ha)e different %ro%ortions and most"y seem to ha)e !een %added$ 6ig No$ +7 %resents thedou!"et of the first ha"f of the fifteenth #entury %ro)ing that this fashion was sti"" %o%u"ar for some time$

This garment was worn under other! top dress (np. houppelande! top gippon) or alone! with belt low%hung on the

hips! lie any other 4acet.

(added or not %added8

It is a contro"ersial matter. Oadding was to get a characteristic slender form and it was "ery fashionable at that

time! both in the court circles and among merchants! and townspeople. @it clothes were made from the stitched

wads! similarly to gambesons. @ew layers of cheaper materials were stitched together (linen! fustian)! cotton%wool

or felt (seemingly sheepJs fleece) to model the foundation of the garment. This was done in order to create

something lie a rac! which ga"e the wearer a trendy silhouette! with a strong indentation at the waist and breast pushed to the front . The chest and shoulders were gi"en more material in order to bring them forth. ll was

finally co"ered with better material. ast layer could also be a 9uilt! or could be left smooth. nalysing the art of

this period! we see that sometimes the slee"es were 9uilted! and were getting narrow towards the wrist. The lines

of 9uilt run "ertically or hori:ontally. ometimes the top of the dress was 9uilted only "ertically! and the lower


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part was stitched hori:ontally. ometimes hori:ontal 9uilting was left "isible in the lower part of the dress! with

the upper co"ered with a smooth material. Orobably the same methods were used while sewing the wappenroc

for ;ue Pytautas! similarly was sewn a pourpoint from yon +il.&-. It surely is a historical solution.

Ae are not sure howe"er about not padded doublets. In later times padding disappears! but we do not now

whether in the times of our interest such solution was already nown. There is strong e"idence that it was

(especially in Italian art)! so until then not padded doublets will be allowed.

Cotehardie 1a#9uet ia##a to% gi%%on io%%a 1u%on$

It is a ind of a short 4acet! which generally is not different form the one described abo"e. Gade of four parts!may be cut in waist! but it is not necessary. lit and buttoned in front and "ery well fitting. ;ifferent collars

appear. There may be no collar at all! or as in doublet! a low stand%up collar! howe"er I met higher and stiff collars

in houppelande style.

There were different slee"es? around 1&0 r. tight! optionally buttoned! but in the beginning of the 15 th century

others appear? loose! bag%slee"es! wide bell%lie! funnel lie! co"ering the hand! etc. In case of 4acets $ there is

uncertainty again? padded or not! but going through the iconography! one can meet more depictions! where the

garment seems not to ha"e it (sometimes padding is seen lie in doublets). lways howe"er there is the

fashionable figure with breast pushed forward. It means that either the 4acet is padded! or it has an underneath

padded dress.

'1. '2. '&.

''. '5. ',.


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',.b.

The image abo"e shows the possible shape of the body! proposed by =rystyna Tursa (',.b).

nother possible "ariant of the 4acets! is fit in the upper part of the body to the lowered waist line! and below

e*tended by sewn in triangles. This creates a loose! hanging freely sit piece. It can be nee long or e"en longer.

=rystyna Tursa calls it top gippon and says that in that period! it was a "ery popular garment among the Oolish

nights. The most nown e*ample of such a top garment is the tomb sculpture of Aladyslaw 8agiello in Aawel


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Loose garment

Tuni# #otte

ower social classes! such as peasants! worers! poorer townspeople! ser"ants! or craftsmen $ wore loose! "ery

simple dresses! ha"ing nothing to do with courtly fashion. This type of dress also appeared among the elderly

people! not specially following changes in fashion. imilar to earlier 12th and 1&th century’s cotte! it has

uncomplicated design! reminding of a shirt! sometimes wider in the lower part or ha"ing gores! with or without a

low collar! and sewn from simple materials (linen! wool). Tunics often appear in art of the 1' th century. To this

should come chausses and braiesLbelt cord.

5&. 5'. 55.

Hou%%e"ande :ro!e;

3ouppelande deri"es from the @rench fashion and was first mentioned around 1&,0. Pery soon it became popular

around Kuropean courts! as a formal! e*9uisite and "ery fashionable dress. Its greatest popularity is confirmed by

the Italian! @rench and Knglish sources! but its presence is also noticeable in other parts of Kurope. It is

characteri:ed by "ertical tubular folds! not "ery much "isible on the chest! howe"er becoming more e"ident closer

to the edge of the garment +il.5-. It was draped with a belt in front and on the bac (in that time the folds were

not yet sewn together).

3ouppelande was a loose! flaring top dress! sewn of sections of a circle without a cut off at the waist. It was madefrom four sections (two in the bac and two in the front) although it was possible to mae it from three sectors

(two in the front and one wider in the bac). It was "ery important to cut the 9uarters from the slant of the

material because otherwise the folds did not lie properly. The most popular seems to ha"e been a completely sewn

model! dressed o"er the head (most with a slight slit at the nec)! although we also now e*amples of

houppelands cut in front and laced or buttoned or hooed. acing $ similar as in tight fitting "estments! buttons

"ery tightly one by one! or in bigger inter"als and sometimes in pairs. rranging buttons in pairs seemed to ha"e

been a no"elty around 1'10. uttons $ lie in the tight fashion. 3ouppelande could ha"e slits in front! in the bac

and on the sides $ to simplify mounting a horse.

The collar area was finished in different ways. ometimes there was no collar! sometimes there was a low stand%

up collar. The most fashionable "ersion was a high! stiff collar! reaching base of the sull and chin! fastened in

front or laced up. uch collars! as seen especially in @rench art! are characteristic for wealthy persons! who

dressed up e*9uisitely.

Ae find e"idence on the different length of the houppelande. @rom "ery long "estments! with a train! to "ery short

$ reaching 4ust below the hips! sewn for horse riding.

This dress may also ha"e characteristic >pocets7 being in fact short slits in the material at the waist. They

enabled to reach for a pouch if the owner of the houppelande wore a belt underneath.

There is also a great "ariety of slee"es in houppelands! from straight through slightly widened! with bell cuts! bag

slee"es etc. slee"e can be buttoned on forearm or wrist. 3ouppelands were sewn from "arious materials! but

because they were elegant dresses! I presume the materials were not the cheapest ones. In winter they were lined

with e*pensi"e furs! and in summer with material. They were worn with or without a belt.


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5,. 5/.

5. 5. ,0.

,1. ,2.

Note' Hou%%e"ande and ro!e$ In our milieus we treat these outfits as two different cases! while within 1&,0 $

1'10 they did not differ at all (only later in the 5th century the robe gained its characteristic appearance! nown

from the ;utch art).

Men’s hats

In the Giddle ges the headwear was a completion of a dress! and it was a habit to wear stylish hats both in

formal situations and e"ery day. bo"e all they ser"ed practical purpose % straw hats for summer! or warm hoods

for winter. 3ead dresses were mentioned "ery often in numerous property lists! so it seems that owning them wasa general standard. 3owe"er I do not agree that they had to be worn all the time and e"erywhere! because there is

absolutely no e"idence either in the iconography or in any other sources. rt of the era often presents figures of

courtiers! bareheaded in formal situations! e*posing their artistic hairdo. The caps were put aside during wor.

Therefore let us treat wearing a head dress as a custom and not as an order.


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Hood

In the 1'th century uni"ersal and comfortable hoods were generally worn by e"eryone. Quite a lot of them

sur"i"ed until our times so we ha"e a pretty good idea of their construction. 3oods were cut from one or two

pieces! sometimes had a stitched in small triangle gores into a ruff! so that it would smoothly lie on the shoulders.

Its length slightly "aried! but in that period of time it usually reached the shoulders. Pery often the hoods had a

tail (fr. 'ornette)! sewn with the whole! or stitched onto it. In the west! the tail length was associated with the

ownerJs social status! but in Ooland! as far as we now this was not the case. The hoods were then often buttoned

in front so as to tightly fit the head. In general the hood should be tight to the head. aggy and loose hoods!

co"ering faces! were worn in western Kurope during the funerals.

,&. ,'. ,5. ,,.

It was "ery popular to arrange the hood into a decorati"e turban. It was done in different ways! such as wearing it

on the head! with opening on the face! and stabilising the whole with the tail..

,/. ,. ,. /0. /1.

3oods were sewn from different materials! better and worse! depending on the occasion they were to be worn on.

Those which sur"i"ed to our times were made of wool. It’s interesting that most of them do not ha"e a lining! but

we now that some of them had. @orm my e*perience I can say! that woollen hoods with woollen lining settle

"ery well on the head.

Ca%s

@elt or fabric sewn caps were as popular during this period as the hoods were. Hften those two head dresses were

4oined! and a cap was worn on a tight fit hood. There was such a great "ariety of models! colours! and trimming of

such caps! that it is difficult to describe them. Pery popular were felt so called >Bobin 3oods7! high caps! hats and

other. There are also stitched fabric bag hats and round low caps. In addition! all sorts of fur hats! decorated with

4ewellery and many! many more.

/2. /&. /'.


32/34


33/34

Straw Hat

oth lords and woring class wore straw hats in summer. ometimes they had lining? =ing 8agieRRo had a hat with

sil "el"et lining.

5. ,. /.

Coat

Fni"ersal and "ery useful! coats are mentioned in numerous bills of the era.


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2. &.

Coheren#e of #"othing

t the end % a little bit about composing of a dress. ;etermination of whom you want to play is the most

important moment in the reconstruction of all aspects of material culture. It is good to consider whom yourepresent! and then accordingly ad4ust parts of your e9uipment to it all. o if you want to be a moderately wealthy

night! you’d obtain a fashionable dress! probably a tight fashioned one! suitable shoes! a rich belt! etc. If you

want to wear loose chausses from the 1&th century you will not wear houppelande lined with sil! nor a chaperon!

but the tunic! etc. Sou ha"e to consider it thoroughly before starting sewing. lso consider whether you want to

ha"e a simple e"eryday dress or a 6unday best7. @or e*ample! an a"erage earning merchant will certainly ha"e at

least two sets of costumes. Hne official and more fashionable $ made of sil! and the other % e"eryday and simple!

but not unfashionable one.

Documents

Czerwona_Ksiazeczka_SiemowitaEN.pdf