The Renaissance

Era card: the Renaissance (c. 1450–1600)

• Engineering under the gown: the farthingale (a hooped underskirt) and the bodies stiffened with reed or whalebone created a rigid silhouette that did not follow the body but redrew it. These stiffened bodies are the ancestor of the corset.
• Neck and sleeves: a small frill at the neck of the shirt or smock grew into a separate starched ruff, and sleeves were tied to the garment with laces called points, so they could be swapped between outfits.
• Fabrics and colours: Florentine and Venetian velvets with the pomegranate pattern, luxurious Spanish black, and crimson from the cochineal insect, which reached Europe from the Americas in the 16th century.
• The birth of the pattern book: in 1580 the Spanish tailor Juan de Alcega published a book in Madrid explaining how to cut garments, draft patterns and lay them out across the width of the cloth to save fabric. It is the earliest surviving printed tailoring book of its kind.
• Dress and power: broad shoulders for men, a huge ruff that made bending difficult, and gowns that ruled out manual work all sent messages about status.