THE MODE IN HATS AND HEADDRESS

This will appeal to people interested in the history of costume rather than to designers. It should be invaluable to theatrical producers, costumers, etc. and to writers who need to check on vogues of the past. To the average reader, the interest lies largely in the interrelation of history and fashion, the effect on mode of periods of war or peace, the social or economic or religious actors in dictating changing fashions, the link between discoveries of new fabrics -- and new ways to use them -- and mode in hate and headdress. Coiffure was -- for a great part of fashion's history -- more important than headgear, and men's fashions dominated types of hats far more than womens. The author goes back to Egyptian days, down through the classic period, to the influence of the Christian Church, then through the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the rise and fall of successive powers (Spanish influence, French, Italian, etc.) -- and with comparatively modern times to the influence of personalities on fashion.