Chats on CostumeRhead, G. Woolliscroft (George Woolliscroft)
History
Chats on Costume
Rhead, G. Woolliscroft (George Woolliscroft)
Clothing and dress
This flat cap appears in a number of portraits by Holbein, worn both
tilted on one side and flat on the top of the head. A cap of this kind
might very well be worn by men at the present day, minus, of course,
the plume and jewels, without appearing startlingly obtrusive. It could
be made in any cloth, and would be a great improvement on the caps
which are at present in use. The extreme refinement, however, of the
Tudor cap is due to the material, to the quality of the workmanship,
and, in the instance of the portrait above-mentioned, to the rich
jewels which adorn it.
Similar shaped headgear has, as a matter of fact, been recently
adopted by girls, but they are for the most part vulgar productions,
indifferently made, and sold cheaply, and afford abundant evidence of
the fact that the milliner possessed no artistic knowledge, or even
taste, and had not taken the trouble, possibly had not considered it
advisable, to refer to fine examples.
The simple flat cap above mentioned was developed in various ways
during the Tudor period, both for men and for women; the brim was
either divided in two or more parts, or it was doubled, slashed, and
puffed in various ways, the puffing being of a different material and
colour to the rest of the hat. For women and for the military, large
plumes of ostrich feathers were added. Many examples of the latter may
be seen in Hans Burgkmair's "Triumphs of Maximilian." In the equestrian
portrait of Charles Howard, Earl of Nottingham (p. 23), we get the
pot-hat proper (Elizabethan version), differing very little as to shape
from that at present in use, but plumed, with three ostrich feathers
and three other pointed ones. The horse is similarly plumed. The hat
can scarcely be said to be a thing of beauty, even with the addition
of its ostrich plume, and adds nothing to the decorative beauty of the
plate, but rather detracts from it.
[Illustration: THOMAS KILLEGREW.
_Engraved by William Faithorne._]
The centenary of the modern pot-hat was celebrated in Paris only last
year, and, amid much jubilation, a number of caustic remarks were
made by Madame Sarah Bernhardt and others on the subject of "man's
cylindrical attire."
On looking at the various developments during the century, as
illustrated in a well-known weekly magazine, the contour of the pot-hat
has changed perhaps less than one might suppose. It has not been a
continuous development, but, rather, an oscillation backwards and
forwards. In point of fact, a continuous development was impossible
without taking leave of the pot-hat altogether; one must either
retrace one's steps or start upon a new track, as will be seen by a
reference to the accompanying diagrams, which must be considered, be it
understood, _merely as diagrams_, and not in any sense as representing
the limits of the artist's power of realism.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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