Honderden...van hand tot hand - Book review

Honderden...van hand tot hand: handschoen en wanten in de Nederlanden voor 1700 by Annemarieke Willemsen. Stichting Rijksmuseum van Ouheden, 2015. 978 90 8932 127 5 €19.50

Hundreds  ... hand to hand: gloves and mittens in the Netherlands before 1700

The first thing to say about this excellent book is that the text is entirely in Dutch, the second is that it is extremely well illustrated. The author, Annemarieke Willemsen, has brought together both information on gloves that have been found in an archaeological context in the Netherlands, and gloves that have survived, with illustrations of gloves in paintings, drawings, manuscripts etc.

The chapters are themed mainly by glove usage, so you have chapters on warm woollen mittens, leather work gloves, luxury leather gloves, military gloves and gloves for sports and games. There is also discussion of gloves as a symbol of dignity by clerics and royalty, and the giving of gloves as gifts. 

Well worth the money – even if you don’t speak Dutch