>> There are boned bodices in the Museum of London, but manly from the >> 1650's. I recently looked at bodices and a beautiful pair of stays from
Melusine> I should have been more specific; I don't know of any boned bodices or corset in existance before after 1603 but before 1640. I believe the pinked white silk in the V&A is dated 1640. The bodice styles changed drastically about 1620, and changed again around 1640-45, so looking at the later garments doesn't really help much. How odd that men's doublets are boned, yet the women's arent. Ref: Naomi Tarrant's Devel of Costume, p.109-110 photos "showing the thick cardboard used to create the straight area between the chest and waist. The front edge is further stiffened by a whalebone." The doublet is 1630s, Natl Museum of Scotland. --cin Cynthia Barnes [EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
