This will be a long and rambeling blogpost since it mainly consists of a research paper entered in the Kingdom Arts and Science competition held at Drachenwalds Spring Crown Tourney of this year. I have edited it a bit after going through my judge´s very thorough comments. So take a deep breath before you take the plunge...
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Portrait of
Barbara Dürer, née Holper, attributed to Albrecht Dürer, c 1490 when
she would have been around 39. Oil on oak panel, 47 cm x 36 cm. Germanisches Nationalmuseum,Nuremberg.
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Here comes a short dictionary of
terms in German that I will use:
The Vächer, the pleated part over
the forehead, comes in many variations.
The Vulsthaube is the headdress
with a bulge creating height and width, in the like of a mushroom.
The Steuchlien is the veil covering
the head, a name mostly used in Nürnberg for the Vulsthaube
Schleier – the veil covering the
head, an earlier headdress than the haube
The Gefrens, the fringe of
string/yarn hanging in the neck
My main focus of interest in this
article is the more simple styles of veils, with or without Vächer, mostly
called schleier in German, thus differing them from Haubes, that is easier to
wear, since it consists of a cap of some sort (there are many many different
Haubes). I will show some examples where a Vulst seems to be used underneath
for comparison. It ranges over the last two decades of the 15th c
and into the first decade of the 16th c. My aim is to discuss
different versions of this headdress, try some of my theories on possible ways
to make them and, if possible, see if there is a clear line of evolution over time.
I will try to discuss materials as well and the main source I will use is
period artwork.
Some background info, mainly taken
from the book “Textiler Hausrat – Kleidung und Haustextilien in Nürnberg von
1500-1650” by Jutta Zander-Seidel,
will also be used since she discusses the written sources, mainly wills and
dress regulations. It states for instance that the Schleier were worn long into
the 16th C, but being out of fashion only by modest married women
and in more rural areas, were the aim to keep up with high fashion was not that
important[1]. Even if her time range is later than mine, the
terminology and the sources are of great value for this article as well.
Schleier
with Vächer in the artwork
The early examples in period art
seem to be rather flat, without the Vulst or with just the wearers own braids
used to fill out the veil.
This
is an early depiction, showing simple wrapped layers of what looks like a long
rectangular veil with a golden-yellow frilled edge.
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| Begegnung an der goldenen Pforte 1438-1440 |
Here
is a good example of a very simple and plain one, giving me a lot of
information on the possible ways to create this. It stands clear to me that it
is a simple veil in one piece, wrapped one time around the head and then left
to hang down over the shoulder.
.
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| Oberrheinischer Meister: Die Geburt Mariens. 1460/65 |
The construction of Vächer
Looking
closer on the pleats it seems that it, in some of the more elaborate cases at
least, might not be sewn as a part of the veil at all but made as a separate
piece. This makes it possible to reuse the pleated piece and changing the veil.
Looking closely at the portrait of Barbara Dürer one can make out some kind of
decoration pinning just over the pleated part, suggesting it being pinned or
stitched together thus making it into two separate pieces, or a way to hold the
wrapped layers together. In Textiler Hausrat it is stated that the overlapping
pleats/striped layers were named “vach” and held together with punctuating
stitches, clearly shown in period art. And there is a dress regulation stating
that if a woman living in the town wore more than six “vach” she would have to
pay a fine. Even so, there are a number of examples showing up to ten “vach”[2].
On that thought, given the amount
of work a pleated and most likely starched frontpiece takes, I would think it
must have been worn over something simpler covering the hair and protecting the
pleated and starched part from getting greasy and worn. I have however not
found anything implying this in Textiler Hausrat. When comparing to the earlier
and more west-oriented fashion of frilled veils, it is clear that the
frontpieces were sewn onto the veil and starched to keep in shape. Isis
Sturtewegen writes in her thesis on frilled veils that the fashion was well spread
across Europe around the later half of the 14th C, and after 1460 it
started to disappear as a noble fashion, but still being used by wealthy
townswomen[3]. The evolution of the “vächer” seems to follow the
same pattern. First it is high fashion among the wealthiest and then it is kept
in the fashion by the wealthy burgerclass in the towns, to eventually fade out
of fashion entirely. I will not do the huge work that Isis Sturtewegen did,
comparing iconography of some 200 pictures/statues etc just from the Low
Countries to form a typology and a timeline[4], but settle for making some iconographic comparisons,
thus forming a theory of types and timeline.
And from this thought I have given
a lot of thinking into how to best make the pleats, to get that full and a bit
more “built-up” look you see when browsing period artwork. When having done my
early attempts of pleated veils, I tried to not use as much fabric, thus the
single pleats just barely covers the previous one. Now I will have to try to
pleat the forehead-covering piece with pleats that begin big and successfully
decreases in width, thus building on the height just as much as lengthwise. On
this picture it definetly looks like that has been done, and then the pleats
are fastened to the Steuchlien by two parallel rows of stitches.
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| Albrecht Dürer, Nürnberg woman dressed for dancing |
In this
picture the wimple part is wrapped around the head and thus covering the chin
as well, and the pleats look like they are either pinned or stitched to the
Steuchlien.
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| Master of the Housebook of Castle Wolfegg, Last quarter of the 15th C, showing hair and using the gefrens |
Here you
clearly see a bit of the white Steuchlien hanging down and covering the neck,
on top of the gefrens.
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| Master of the Housebook, Showing hair but without the gefrens |
In this
next portrait of Ursula Tucher the pleats are tiny but building up quite a bit
before the vulst. Looks pinned together, with the little pinheads clearly
visible. This could be a way to simply hold the layers together or indicate a
separate pleated piece over the forehead with a plain veil fastened to it and
then wrapped around the head and chin. The backpart of the Steuchlien is also
partly visible hanging down in the neck.
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| Michael Wolgemut - Portrait of Ursula Tucher, 1478 |
Tiny tiny pleats en masse, not likely something you re-do after the wash. Unless it is simply wrapped,but I find it unlikely that one did wrap ten layers or more. The schleier would probably be rather bulky and unflattering, and this is not the case in the depictions of Albrecht Dürer and others. This will be shown in my later experiments.
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In this following picture it looks like
it is wrapped around the head, forming pleats, and then used as chin-wrap and
finally, wrapped up around the head and fastened with some pins. The height and
width looks like it is created with simple wrapped layers and not a vulst. You
can clearly see that the chin-part is folded in the middle and even
pinned/stitched along the edge under the chin. Since it is a common trait with
the fastening stitches, I wonder if that would make the schleier stick together
in the wash. But considering how linen was washed during old times I doubt it.
And on that note, the known materials for schleier, taken from the Nürnberg
testimonies, are linen and cotton[5]. I
would think they were washed in similar fashion, since both materials can take
heat and beating without suffering from it like a silk or wool would.
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Schweiz, Maria und Engel der Verkündigung, detail, ca 1470,
now in the Bavarian National Museum in Muenchen (Photo by Elsa Hahma)
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Here is a rather simple version, clearly wrapped in four
layers over the forehead, then folded double and wrapped around the chin and
head. And it looks rather bulky with just four layers. For science I did cut
and hem a five metre long veil, that would be long enough for it to be wrapped
six times around my head, forming six Vächer, and then enough to form a vimple
hanging over the shoulder or wrapped around the chin. It was rather difficult
to wrap it in front of the mirror, since the amount of fabric being handled, it
tangling around me like a toga and then, when all was on top of the head I
fastened the Vächer with four pins over the forehead. The veil was certainly to
wide, since it bulked up way too much fabric in the back, but I did manage to wrap
it in forming a large bulb in the back. (Note – this headwear is not for
driving. It is very difficult trying to hold your head straight in a car seat,
I had to pull back the back of the seat in order for my now rather large head
to fit in the car without me having to hit my head on the steering wheel.)
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| Zwei Wunder aus der Kindheit des hl. Nikolaus, Hans Traut Nurnberg, End of 15 C (Photo by Elsa Hahma) |
In this picture it looks like a number of layers simply
wrapped around the head and the loose hanging part is folded in the middle.
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| Portrait of a Woman of the Hofer Family, artist unknown, c. 1470 |
There are also a number of Schleier with
frilled edges and Vächer, somewhat a combination of the earlier fashion with
the frilled veils and the later ones with Vächer. There is also a geographic
difference since frills is predominantly used in the western parts of Europe
and the Vächer more in the German speaking cultures. In this portrait the
Schleiers is supported by a Vulsthaube of a rather unusual shape, the edges are
frilled and it is definetly pinned or stitched together. It seems that the part
hanging down in the back is also pinned/stitched along the edge so that it will
hang neatly together.
Hair showing and the use of the Gefrens
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| Portrait of a Burgerfrau Sebald Bopp attributed, 1475 |
A number of
portraits and the main part of women depicted in the Hausbook of Castle Wolfegg
part of the hair, braided, is shown over the temples and hiding the ears. The
use of the Gefrens, the little fringe of string covering the back of the neck,
seems to be the fashion, often seen in combination with the Vächer (pleated
Steuchleins), but it does not seem to be used when the Vulst comes into use. I
would say, after having studied this in many pictures covering the period
1440-1510, that the Gefrens falls out of use as the Vulst gets popular in the
last decades before 1500. The same goes for showing of hair/braids over the
temples and ears, it too is not to be seen in combination with the Vulst and is
also seen in the earlier decades and fades away towards the end of the 15th
C.
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Pair of lovers, Master BXG, detail, Germany, 1470-1490 |
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15th century (1486?) Germany Basel, Universitätsbibliothek, AN II 3: Matriculation Register of the Rectorate of the University of Basel, Volume 1 (1460-1567) fol.69v - Rektorat von Ludwig Odertzheym, SS 1486; coat of arms |
Wrapped layers?
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| Lägg till Detail from the Birth of Mary, 1490-1510, Ansbach, Germany (Schwanenritteraltar, St. Gumbertus) |
Another
possible solution is wrapping a long band of hemmed linen fabric to create the
“pleats”. Like the well known picture of Mary Magdalene by Rogier van der
Weyden. Just compare these two pictures and you will see what I mean.
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Rogier van der WEYDEN. St Mary Magdalene 1450s Silverpoint on prepared paper |
Steuchliens without pleats and using patterned fabrics
There are
also variations showing Steuchliens without the pleats, using other elements of
decoration, and being used with or without the Vulst. Here are some examples:
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| Wife of Dr. Johann Stephan Reuss - Lucas Cranach the Elder |
In this
portrait it looks more like a woven piece with black (or dark blue) and red
stripes. It looks like it is simply tied in a knot in the back and then the
longer wimple-piece is folded and pinned in the back instead of hanging down.
And in the following it is a thin three stripes in black on the veil.
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Anonymous German Artist active in Swabia
ca. 1480 Portrait of a Woman
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Testing theories
According
to sumptuary laws one was not allowed more than six Vächer (folds) in a
headdress in Nuremberg[6]. Obviously this was not obeyed, as
can be seen in the picturematerial provided earlier.
I have some
different theories to try concerning construction of Vächer. First I want to
try the simple wrap a really long veil around your head letting the hem form
Vächer. So I started with a long light-weight linen veil, long enough to wrap
six laps and leaving a vimple to hang around the neck. This meant that I had to
hem about 5,5 metres of veil. Then the veil turned out too wide, so I had to
cut it down and re-hem it down one side. It is not easy to wrap it neatly
around the head either, the length of it lying in a heap on the floor. And the
weight is a strain on the neck with just the six Vächer. It also is very hard
to get that very neat and tight row of pleats as I have shown in the period art
examples. Jutta Sander-Zeidel describes these Schleier as finely layered pleats
referred to as Vach/Vächer and also states that they are held together by a
punctuating fastening of some kind[7]. Some of the depictions I have
shown indicated pins, others might be either a single or multiple rows of
stitches.
Considering
these findings I am convinced that any headdress showing more than six Vächer
needs to be constructed otherwise. I mean, in some of those pictures the lady
is wearing up to 20 or more Vächer. Even if you made it in silk it would be a
huge amount of fabric that you have to manuever around your head.
So I had to
look for other options in order to get that look with a stack of pleats over
the forehead. A separate section with just the pleats seemed to be a promising
thing to try, better than the widespread used solution on sewn pleats at the
end of a veil that I, as well as many others, have used. First I will show a
few examples of my tryouts to get the right look with the pleated veil.
First
picture shows the plain rather square veil with pleats at one end, folded over
the forehead, pinned in the back and then simply tucked in. The second picture
shows additional long veils wrapped on top of the pinned pleated veil. It works
but does not really add up for me. I favour the use of gefrens and braids
showing over the ears.
So back to
the drawing board. I wanted to get the look of stacked pleats and when discussing
this with Meisterinne Katheryn we both agreed that a separate piece, pinned or
basted onto a small cap, with or without a vulst, would be a logical solution.
Then the cap can be washed while the pleated piece can be kept in good
condition, maybe even starched to keep the shape. That also gives you the
ability to use the piece with or without the vulst or with different caps.
I started
with hemming a lot of linen strips, stacking them up and then basting them
together to form a neat little row of pleats.
I formed
the basted stack of pleats into a piece and fastened it all together at the
sides.
Then I went
on to construction of some kind of cap to pin/baste it too. I decided to try
with a very simple version of a vulst, a piece of linen rolled around some wool
yarn forming a padded roll at one end. Then I formed it in the sides with a
simple gathering and finally stitched on a band to tie it with. But since tying
it with a knot would not go well with putting a veil on top I decided to pin
the tiebands together over the forehead instead. The vulst leaves the back of
the head uncovered.
With a
smaller veil wrapped and pinned on top the separate vächer looks rather neat
and it is so much more comfortable and easier to wear then the 5,5 meters of
veil. This will also work very well with a longer veil hanging down in the neck
and forming a vimple as well. So the 5,5 meter veil will most likely not live
very long but will be divided into two or maybe even three long veils, to be
used on top of this separate Vächer-piece.
Sources:
Sturtewegen,
Isis “”Een gouwen rync
ende een ransse" : de gerimpelde hoofddoek in het modelandschap van de
Lage Landen der late middeleeuwen : een interdisciplinaire studie”, Master thesis
(Ghent University, 2009)
Zander-Seidel, Jutta “Textiler Hausrat – Kleidung und
Haustextilien in Nürnberg von 1500-1650, München 1990
