Clothing the Past: Surviving Garments from Early Medieval to
Early Modern Western Europe, by Elizabeth Coatsworth and Gale Owen-Crocker.
February 2018. Brill, ISBN: 978-90-04-35216-2, £198
This is a seriously expensive book, which I have not bought
for that very reason. However I can give an outline of what it includes and to
an extent what it excludes. For even more information go the the Brill website
at https://brill.com/abstract/title/27148
The first thing to say is that although it says “to Early
Modern” in the title, the scope of the book is actually to the end of the
fifteenth century though, as the authors say, they have extended slightly into
the sixteenth century by looking at the gibbones (doublets) of Cosimo and Don
Garcia de Medici, but none other of the Medici grave garments, nor any other 16th
century items are included, except Archbishop William Warham’s glove.
The garments covered are grouped into chapters by type:
Headwear, Outer garments, Priestly garments, Body garments of wool and linen,
Rich body garments, Upper body (coat like) garments, Leg coverings, Minor
vestments, Footwear, and Accessories.
For each garment you are given the date, where it is, a
general description, the materials it is made from, construction details,
dimensions, a list of further reading, and an image.
Obviously many of these garments survived because they were
associated with a particular person, some of the examples included are Eleanor
of Castile’s pellote (sideless surcoat), and the pourpoint of Charles of Blois.
Others garments are from archaeological sites, particularly the Greenland
garments, but also the Orkney hood and the Bocksten tunic. Some of the Lengberg
Castle finds are also included.
The book brings together one hundred surviving, mainly
complete, medieval garments.
