Clothing from the Decameron: Men

Boccaccio wrote several texts, though his best known work was The Decameron. This series of 10 tales per day told for 10 days was written in the second quarter of the fourteenth century. It remained popular and was translated into French almost a century later. This edition was illustrated by 2 Flemish artists, who completed their work in 1430-1440. These illuminations provide a fairly comprehensive view of the clothing worn in the Low Countries at this time. There are distinctly French influences in some of the fashions, but the styles and accessories are consistent with other Flemish art of the time.

The following is a hand out for a class I ran. It is a basic overview of clothing worn in the 1430s in the region around Flanders. There will be 3 parts: Men's, Women's and Children's clothing.

Men's clothing

Underwear

Braies

Drawstring waist, trunk style in Franco-Flemish clothing 

Sherte

Full body, long sleeves, always white

Inner layer

Jack / pourpoint

Tight at the waist, bodice separate to skirt

Hose

Separate legs, laced to the inner jack. Seam up the back. Both legs the same colour. Skin tight for all classes of people, bar the very poorest.

Outer layer

Outer Jack

Similar shape to inner jack, but the hose are not laced to them. Fastened with buttons.

or    Robe

Various lengths (floor to above the knee), pleats or folds at the waist, hidden hooks and eyes down the front. Sleeves can be straight, bag or hanging. Can have fur lining or trim.

Men's Accessories

Cloak

The cloak can have a split from the ground to the upper arm or be fastened by 3-4 buttons on the shoulder.

Hats

Chaperon - styled on a hood with a rolled face opening. Bag hats with various height crowns. Some with rolled brims. Straw and felted hats. Acorn hats are shaped like a beanie.

Belts and Pouches

Plain black belts 1.5" wide are the most common. Kidney shaped pouches have their own matching belt. Some other pouches have matching belts. Buckles are rarely seen in this document. Studs and carving are used for ornamentation.

Shoes

Black ankle boots very common among all classes.

Footed hose also common, though only indoors. They have a sole of a different colour, most likely from leather or some tougher material. Pattens were made from wood and leather, and are shown in some outdoor scenes. They can have one or two straps in black or brown.