The first garment to be donned is a loose, white linen layer, called a chemise (it. camicia), which is worn against the skin and which could be embellished with embroidery at the neck and cuff. Over the camicia is worn a fitted dress typically of wool or silk (it. cotta, gamurra, sottana, etc). The fitted dress, henceforth referred to as cotta, laced up the front and had an attached, pleated skirt. The sleeves were initially set in, but by the end of the century were detachable. Over the cotta another gown of much more sumptuous fabric is worn (it. cioppa, giornea, vestimento, etc). While the cotta is fairly fitted and provides support to a lady's figure, the fit of the over-gown, henceforth referred to as gamurra, varied. My survey of the gamurra in art and in text is that it served the purpose of announcing the social status of the wearer via the cost of materials, color, embellishment and quality of fur lining. The cut of the gamurra varied vary from semi-fitted to loose.
The fabrics used for the cotta and gamurra ranged from plain wools to silks, embroidered velvets and figured brocades. There are some contemporary descriptions of wedding ensembles that show the fantastic level to which this garment could rise:
When she was betrothed he ordered a gown (ed. cotta) of crimson velvet for her made of silk and a surcoat (ed. gamurra) of the same fabric, which is the most beautiful cloth in Florence. He had it made in his workshop. And he had a garland of feathers and pearls made (for her) which cost eighty florins, the headdress underneath has two strings of pearls costing sixty florins or more. When she goes out she'll have more than four hundred florins on her back. And he ordered some crimson velvet to be made up into long sleeves lined with marten, for (her to wear) when she goes to her husband's house. And he's having a rose-colored gown made, embroidered with pearls. (Ref, Gregory p31)
A description of the same outfit from the memoir of the bride-groom, Marco Parenti is similar but with some different details. It's translated that he bought a large piece of crimson silk velvet for the giornea from his own workshop. He bought red cotton lining from a different clothmaker, 32 eyelets from the goldsmith, and soft leather or fur trimmings for the edgings. He also records that 18 braccie of the same crimson silk velvet were made into a cotta. The cotta had 120 golden eyelets for the front and 100 smaller ones on the embroidered sleeves. The edge of the cotta was embellished with soft skins or furs, a fringe in gold and green, silk ribbons and braid. A third item was gifted to the bride, a headpiece. It was a garland of peacock tails embellished with silver and pearls. He records that he paid for 500 eyes of select peacock tail feathers at one time and then makes a later payment for 300 more for a total of 800 feathers. The feathers were complimented with artificial ones, golden tremolanti, and enameled flowers in red and blue. He records he also spent money on gold leaf, six ounces of pearls, and for tinsel and brass. When complete, the headpiece had eleven rosettes made of peacock feathers. (Ref, Phillips p 42-43)
This was not everyday wear. To put this outfit into context, the bride-groom decked the bride in her wedding trousseau as a way of doing honor to the marriage and announcing to the community at large what value he placed on his marriage; more expense equated with higher honor and value of marriage. According to translations of Marco Parenti's journals, the dress describe here was later "decommissioned" into its component pieces and sold. Therefore the bride may or may not be allowed to "own" the outfit after it served its purpose. Regardless of how garments were recycled, the importance of dress and its role in declaring social status in 15th century Italy is equivalent to the role that luxury vehicles and high-end designer clothing play in the social circles of the contemporary elite.
References
Frick, Carole Collier. Dressing Renaissance Florence. 2005. ISBN: 0-8018-8264-8.
Gregory, Heather. Selected Letters of Alessandra Strozzi, translated. 1997. ISBN 0-520-20390-9
Phillips, Mark. The Memoir of Marko Parenti A Life in Medici Florence. 2000. ISBN: 1-55111-389-9.
Time Line of Art and Photo Adventures
The following is a timeline of 15th century art and the projects it inspired me to do. The photos are links to pages with additional pictures.
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1445-1460 |
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1460-1470 |
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1470-1480 |
Forthcoming |
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1480-1490 |
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1490-1500 |
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