Fashions that kill: no, literally. What do you know about corsets? Let's investigate it from the ancient past, through the Elizabethan Ers....

 

First, a note to you, Dear Reader;

As you 'saw' with my last post, history is not just in writing, but is visual;  visceral.  Material culture as a form of historical analysis is just as important as a thousand page essay on Napoleonic strategy.  It's certainly more interesting.

I am quoting below from a non-scholarly web article, just because I like how they said it.

"Ah, corsets! The quintessential symbol of feminine beauty and elegance, or the bane of women's existence? It all depends on who you ask." 

https://www.frenchmeadowscorsets.com/blogs/blog/the-history-of-corsets

You would’ve thought by now, that the American woman learned a valuable lesson:  impossible, idealized body types are NOT conducive to good health--and I thought that by the end of the 20th century that women would be sensible in emulating fashion trends.  I include MEN in that statement as well, Dear Reader.

Yeah, I wish I could tell you that, Dear Reader, but that's not the truth.  Women continue to be enchanted and/or seduced by images on the net;  in movies;  at the mall.  

I thought that with the invention of the bra, women would have dumped the corset forever, but they haven't

 

Just in case you thought that I was not being gender sensitive, take a look at these fine gentlemen:

O        M       G

What does a corset do to your insides?  Let's take a look:

Oooooooh.  Healthy.

We don't really know just when the corset began.  There is some visual evidence that women of the Minoan civilization wore a garment akin to it.

Minoan women present us with one of the first instances of corsetry.  However, what was the next step in breast support, if that is what the corset originally was? 

Well, let's take a look at what Roman women wore:

Historians seem to agree, that the Roman woman generally tied strips of fabric over and around their breasts to offer some support.  I'm going to be a bad little historian and show you what I mean.  There was an attempt to replicate this in the movie "Gladiator" with the costumes of Crowe's love interest, Lucilla:

Yes, it's Hollywood.  I know.  Still, it's an interesting idea.  Women used such apparel as both a support and method of breast feeding.

Women of the late empire additionally wore a type of underwear that "looks modern" in a way, chiefly for sporting events:

Source:  Getty Images

And on to the Renaissance...

The Elizabethan era:

The waistline changes, but it still resembles an hourglass, doesn't it?  And, just so you don't forget, one always has to be reminded of what was happening inside:

Next week, I'm gonna show you the morbidity of corsetry in the 19th century.