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Doublet

ca. 1630-1635 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Man’s doublet of black silk taffeta, with a supplementary weft of silver wire, interlined with linen and lined with bright yellow silk taffeta. It has a 2¼-inch (5.4 cm) collar, 1¼-inch (3 cm) deep shoulder wings, curving 2-piece sleeves, with a high waist and 8 large, deep laps below the waist. The belly pieces are made of bents (stems of rushes) stitched between layers of linen and covered with the yellow silk. There are 7 worked buttonholes on each sleeve, 27 on the left front and 3 on the left collar. The buttons have a domed wooden core covered with black silk floss and silver filè thread; 21 remain. A lacing loop of yellow taffeta is sewn to each belly piece. Around the waist of the doublet are 22 bows of 1¼-inch (3.1 cm) of gauze ribbon woven with silver filè and strip, each end bearing a silver repoussé aiguillette.

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read In the pink: colour in menswear For centuries, colour in men's clothing has been a means for both imposing conformity, or expressing individuality. The associations of colour have changed over time – In the 1700s European men wore pink, for example, as a sign of wealth and power, rather than gender. Today the spectrum of...

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Silk, linen, silver, bents; hand-woven, hand-sewn, repoussé
Brief description
Man's doublet of black silk shot with silver, probably Italian, with silver ribbon points, made in England, ca. 1630-1635
Physical description
Man’s doublet of black silk taffeta, with a supplementary weft of silver wire, interlined with linen and lined with bright yellow silk taffeta. It has a 2¼-inch (5.4 cm) collar, 1¼-inch (3 cm) deep shoulder wings, curving 2-piece sleeves, with a high waist and 8 large, deep laps below the waist. The belly pieces are made of bents (stems of rushes) stitched between layers of linen and covered with the yellow silk. There are 7 worked buttonholes on each sleeve, 27 on the left front and 3 on the left collar. The buttons have a domed wooden core covered with black silk floss and silver filè thread; 21 remain. A lacing loop of yellow taffeta is sewn to each belly piece. Around the waist of the doublet are 22 bows of 1¼-inch (3.1 cm) of gauze ribbon woven with silver filè and strip, each end bearing a silver repoussé aiguillette.
Dimensions
  • Overall length: 75.5cm (approx)
  • Chest under armholes circumference: 120.0cm (approx)
Object history
Isham collection
Collection
Accession number
185-1900

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Record createdJune 24, 2009
Record URL
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