Saturday, October 13, 2007

1703 Dress Sense

Lord William


drummer


hunter


a waiter


Dutch sailor


hußarn obrister


ein honack


mountain man


polnischer heÿduck


cossack


ein türckischer granitz-baßa


ein türckischer granitz-baßa


Turk carrying the Koran


woman going to Turkish bath


a Tartar


An Indian protected by an umbrella


a distinguished Ethiopian


Dutch Sea Captain and his wife

Dutch artist Caspar Luyken (1672-1708) (son of Jan Luyken) collaborated with Nürnberg publisher Christoph Weigel to produce 101 costume plates which centre primarily around the upper echelons from the Viennese Court of Leopold I. There are also a fair number of slightly more outlandish engravings devoted to Egyptians, Turks, Tartars and other other exotic types.

The preface to the book was written by Abraham a Sancta Clara (as seen in the last post in relation to his Judas book) - getting the spelling of his name correct delivers up more accessible information about this curious fellow.

"In 1677 Sancta Clara was appointed the Imperial Court preacher in Vienna. He was known for his rabid anti-Semitism as well as his hatred of the Ainfidel Turks. In the introduction to the Neu-eröffnete Welt-Galleria Sancta Clara states that one should study this volume so as to be able to differentiate one class from another. Furthermore, Sancta Clara inveighs against those individuals who dress themselves in the clothes of other nations. Despite Sancta Clara's vituperative attitudes, the images in this volume are decidedly neutral, neither mocking nor caricaturing the subjects."

1 comment :

Karla said...

A fine-figured group overall, although the Indian from Bantham (of bantam fowl fame?) seemed a bit stringy for my taste.

It is unfortunate that male costume has gone into such a decline...

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