16th Century Women's Accessories

The “rebirth” of Classicism, which combined all artistic expression in a single orderly, rational

16th century French noblewoman

approach, found a fertile creative field in gold jewelry. During the Renaissance the jeweler’s art reached truly high levels—particularly in Italy in the grand duchy of Tuscany. Nearly all the most famous artists responsible for the Renaissance artistic revival—Lorenzo Ghiberti, Filippo Brunelleschi, Antonio and Piero Pollaiuolo, and Sandro Botticelli—served apprenticeships in the goldsmiths’ workshops, where gentlemen went to order medallions for their hats and where ladies went to have their jewels set.

Because of their elaborate workmanship, which meant that their artistic value was far greater than the intrinsic value of their materials, many pieces of jewelry have been handed down to modern times in public and private collections. Even more extensive evidence, however, is provided by paintings from this period that show the jewelry worn by both men and women.

During the Renaissance there was an enormous increase in the use of jewelry throughout Europe. The courts of England, France, and Spain, the French duchy of Burgundy, and the Italian duchy of Tuscany indulged in extravagant contests, trying to outdo each other in the display of gold, gems, and pearls, a phenomenon that for centuries had not occurred on such a large scale. The nobility and the rich middle class followed this fashion. Francis I of France surrounded himself with famous artists like Benvenuto Cellini and Leonardo da Vinci. In Paris, artists such as Jean Duvet, Étienne Delaune, and the Fleming Abraham de Bruyn were the outstanding creators of designs for jewelry. Hans Holbein the Younger was the individual who was most responsible for the introduction of Renaissance jewelry from the Continent into England, where he found fertile ground, thanks to Henry VIII’s great passion for jewels—a passion surpassed only by that of Elizabeth I.

Queen Elizabeth of England, showing the queen adorned in Renaissance fashion with pearl choker and pendant and a series of longer necklaces, portrait in oil by an unknown English artist, 16th century; in the Pitti Palace, Florence.Carlo Bevilacqua—Scala/Art Resource, New York

Women rarely limited themselves to a single necklace, usually wearing a choker-type necklace made of pearls, with or without a pendant, together with a longer second necklace made of gold, with or without the inclusion of gems. A third necklace was often hooked to the clothing, on the shoulders, and formed a double loop, being lifted up in the centre and fastened to the bodice with a jeweled pin.

Anne of ClevesAnne of Cleves, portrait by Hans Holbein the Younger, 1539; in the Louvre Museum, Paris

The precious ornament on which the artist-jewelers lavished all their creativity and technical ability was the pendant. At first this consisted of a decorative medallion enclosing a cameo with figures and subjects of Classical derivation, such as busts of women and pagan deities. These figures were later enriched with inserts of gold, enamel, and gems, which enhanced the polychrome effect. Still later, the figures were freely modeled in brilliant polychromy with a great variety of subjects—animals, Tritons, mermaids, ships, sea monsters, and symbolic figures, sometimes in elaborate tableaux—fashioned in complicated openwork compositions comprising several linked pieces, in which the irregular shape of a large baroque pearl was often used for the body of an animal or a centaur’s torso.

The Canning Jewel, a 16th-century pendant of gold, enamel, rubies, diamonds, and baroque pearls; in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.Courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Throughout Europe the ring enjoyed wide popularity in an unlimited variety of types, including those with a bezel that could be opened and used as a container for relics, symbols, or—as romantic tradition has it—poison.

· Cordoba Leather Gloves

Among the many accessories that both men and women might carry in the sixteenth century were finely made Cordoba leather gloves. People carried a variety of gloves during the time period, including gloves made from leather, suede (leather with a rough surface), or kid (the skin of a young goat), but the most prized gloves were made of leather from Cordoba, Spain.

Back/Front of 16th century gloves

Leather, satin and embroidered and lace trimmed Pair of Gloves 1603 Victoria & Albert Museum

Cordoba had been a center for leather tanning since the eighth century C.E. , and it was known for the outstanding quality of its leathers, which came in a variety of colors. A fancy pair of gloves had delicately sewn fingers and might be perfumed. Some gloves had long gauntlets, or decorative extensions that extended beyond the wrist. These gauntlets might have fringes or scallops and could be embroidered or studded with jewels.

A glove from 1590

Pair of mittens, ca. 1600 (made). Pair of mittens, crimson velvet, white satin, embroidered, embroidered in England and said to have been a gift from Elizabeth

The fanciest Cordoba leather gloves were probably never worn. Instead they were carried as a pair, either held gracefully in the hand or tucked into a decorative belt worn around the waist. The gloves that people actually wore for work, riding, or bird handling were made of more common leather.

Jewel studded gloves carried in hands.

· Fans

Fashionable ladies in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries were known for carrying a variety of personal accessories, including gloves, pomanders (scented jewelled balls), handkerchiefs, and fans.

A lady carrying pomander ball and her gloves

German, Pomander, 1580-90

Fans had been used in China from as early as 3000 B.C.E. and were popular in Japan beginning in the seventh century C.E. People began to use feather fans during the Middle Ages (c. 500–c. 1500) and the rigid board fan, usually made of decorated wood, came into use in Italy early in the sixteenth century. The folding fan was imported to Europe from the Orient in the sixteenth century and quickly became popular among noblewomen in the courts of Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, and England.

Fans are shown being sold in the wonderful 1636 etching by Abraham Bosse of a shop in the La Galerie du Palais in Paris. The rear centre shows folding fans displayed opened out, while in the centre front a gentleman displays a fan to a lady.

The fan museum. London : Third Millenium, 2002.

As with other elements of costume from this period, decoration was the key to the fan. Fans could be made of all variety of materials, from exotic bird feathers to delicate lace to gilded wood. No expense was spared to make fans for the richest women. The way that a fan was used was also an important part of a woman's overall presentation. A woman might shyly hide her face behind a spread fan, or wave her fan about in a dramatic manner.

feather fan in 1621 portrait of Lady Lister by Marcus Geeraerts showing fan handle with the feathers inserted, hanging from her girdle.

· Handkerchiefs

One of the true fashion innovations of the sixteenth century was the introduction of the handkerchief as a fashion accessory. Handkerchiefs themselves were not new; people had been carrying a small cloth for blowing their nose for years. These soiled items, however, were kept tucked away out of sight, causing uncertainty as to when the first handkerchief was actually invented. In the sixteenth century, however, the handkerchief came out of the pocket and into public scrutiny. The same women who dressed in exquisite silk gowns with delicate lace ruffs, or collars, and cuffs had their tailors add lace or a scalloped edge to a fine linen cloth and elevated the handkerchief to the status of fashion accessory. A fine lacy handkerchief, or hanky, was not tucked away in a pocket but held in the hand or draped coyly across the arm. It might be matched with a fan or another accessory.

Diane Cecil, painted in 1614 by William Larkin, is carrying a folding fan and scalloped lace edged handkerchief

Handkerchiefs have remained a fashion accessory ever since. It is rumored in fashion history that Frenchwoman Marie Antoinette (1755–1793) was frustrated that handkerchiefs were offered in so many shapes: round, oval, rectangular, and so on. Her husband, King Louis XVI of France (1754–1793), made it a law that all handkerchiefs must be square, and they have remained square ever since.