The Heritage of Dress. Wilfred Mark Webb

44.—A Gothic spire (St. Stephen’s, Caen) compared with the hennin (the latter after Fairholt).

      

      Leaving this suggestive line of research, and coming to hats as we have them at the present day, we find that they offer several remarkable vestiges for our consideration. First of all there is the hat-band outside, which sometimes ends in two tails or streamers that hang from the back of the hat (see Figure 47). From the bow usually present it is evident that the hat-band was tied, and the streamers represent the loose ends. As a matter of fact, primitively, a head-dress was made from a piece of cloth, round which a fillet was tied so that it fitted the head. In this connexion Figure 45 is most interesting. It represents the back view of the head of the Egyptian woman of the Sixth Dynasty, who is seen in Figure 76, and shows a head-dress which is confined with a fillet that is tied at the back so as to make two tails.

      Fig. 45.—Band with streamers fastening on the head-dress of an Egyptian woman. From a figure of the Sixth Dynasty, B.C. 3500.

      Fig. 46.—A lady’s head-dress confined with a fillet, fourteenth century (after Viollet le Duc).

      The modern Arab fastens his kefiyeh with a twist of camel’s hair without streamers, and the lady of the fourteenth century, shown in Figure 46, has also an ordinary band.

      The child’s sailor hat and the Scotch cap are among the modern head coverings which retain the strings (Figure 49). A twelfth-century head-dress shown in a manuscript (Figure 48) has a great similarity to the Scotch cap, as the band forms a kind of binding to the article in both cases, and there are streamers to both.

      Fig. 47.—A sailor hat with band and streamers.

      Fig. 48.—A twelfth-century head-dress with streamers from a MS. (after Viollet le Duc).

      

      The strings or streamers are to be found in many other head coverings, including the mitres of bishops (see Figure 50). The particular mitre illustrated is that of the See of Durham, which is distinguished from others in being plumed.

      Fig. 49.—A modern Scotch cap with streamers.

      Fig. 50.—A mitre of the See of Durham showing the strings (after Millington).

      An interesting suggestion as to the origin of the slit in the top of the mitre may be mentioned here. Head-dresses were used in very early times which were in the form of a fish’s head, and it has been thought that the slit in the mitre, so distinctly shown in chess-men, represents the fish’s mouth.

      On looking at the inside of a modern hat, a little bow of silk ribbon will usually be found at the back where the two edges of the leather lining meet. Here, again, is a vestige. (See Figure 51.)

      

      Fig. 51.—Small vestigial bow of ribbon in a modern hat.

      In some hats the ribbon does not simply make the bow, but it is threaded through a greater or less number of holes in the leather, though now fulfilling no useful purpose. (See Figure 52.)

      Fig. 52.—A hat with the remains of lacing.

      

      In a hunting hat, however (see Figure 53), the lacing is continuous round the hat, and the lining can be made to fit the wearer. It helps to form a buffer, should the huntsman unfortunately fall on his head, and it is claimed that many lives have been saved by this small detail.

      Fig. 53.—A hunting hat with complete lacing inside.

      It may be gathered from the description that in times when hats could not easily be got to fit their wearers, the lacing inside would be most useful, as it ensured that the size could be adjusted.

It is possible also that in the lacing we have a means by which a hat was originally shaped, and that the lace is really a hat-band threaded through the material of the head-dress instead of being tied round outside. The first diagram on page 57 shows a flat piece of leather cut into a circular form; the next shows it perforated and a lace put through the openings; the third indicates how by tightening the string a crown could be made to the hat.

      Fig. 54.—A disc of leather.

      Fig. 55.—The disc perforated and the lace inserted.

      Fig. 56.—The lace tightened to form a crown.

      Fig. 57.—The ends of the lace tied as a bow inside.

      In time, when the crown was made in different ways, it would be easy to transfer the lacing to the lining as seen already in the hunting hat (Figure 53).

      It is interesting to note that a small bow is also found inside ladies’ hats, and often used as a place on which to put the name of the maker. (See Figure 58.)

      Fig. 58.—A bow fastened to the lining of a lady’s hat.

      Fig. 59.—Plumes on the left side.

      Sir George Darwin has shown why