Introduction

A painting by the Netherlandish artist Govert Camphuysen from the mid-1660s shows a group of men and women gathered at a town inn, probably in the region of Scania, a part of Denmark until 1658, informally dressed in layers of clothes (Figure 10.1).¹ The men wear linen shirts with collars and a combination of stockings, breeches and doublets, along with jerkins, caps or broad-brimmed hats, and slippers, boots or shoes of leather, while women are dressed in skirts, bodices, doublets, white linen partlets, caps, stockings and slippers or shoes. The clothes seem modest, practical and worn-out, dominated by coarse woollen and linen garments. They also appear bulky and loose in strong contrast to high fashion of the time. Yet the presence of small decorative details, colour and small accessories in the painting suggests that there was a desire among the lower social order to show off modest levels of prosperity or social aspirations.

Several dress historians, such as John Styles, Patricial Allerston and Paula Hohti, have shown that, even though their economic circumstances were often modest and their daily activities were dominated by work, the lower social classes were connected with contemporary fashions in major European centres such as Venice and London.² But it has never been explored in depth how dress fashions spread among the non-elite population in more peripheral areas of Europe, such as in early modern Denmark, and what ordinary artisans and local shopkeepers wore in their everyday lives.

This chapter explores how artisans and small shopkeepers dressed in early modern Denmark, focusing especially on clothes that they wore in their work lives. ³ Exploring the typical garments and accessories that were listed in the inventories of shoemakers, bakers, tailors, barbers and other artisans in the port town of Elsinore in Denmark in 1550–1650, the aim is to show that appropriate garb at the lower social levels was not only designed to protect from weather but it was a key function of the clothes to help men and women of artisan rank to appear respectable. This was especially important in artisans’ professional and social lives. Just as clean clothes, such as white linen aprons, held a significant material and cultural value for Italian women from artisan ranks in both cities and countryside, as Elizabeth Currie and Jordan Mitchell-King have shown in Chapter 9 above), so neat appearance and fine clothes helped urban artisans and small shopkeepers and their families in small Danish towns to appear prosperous and trustworthy – virtues that would help them to attract customers, to conduct business deals with fellow tradespeople and to express professional ambitions.

Figure 10.1 Govert Camphuysen, Town Inn, 1664–65. Malmoe Art Museum.

Practical and comfortable

The daily life of early modern artisans was dominated by work. Apart from Sundays and religious holidays, the majority of bakers, barbers, shoemakers, butchers and other artisans living in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Elsinore worked from early morning until late in the evening. The clothes of artisans, therefore, had to be primarily functional and meet the requirements of manual or physical work both inside and outside of the workshop, in all weather conditions. It was vital, therefore, that their clothes were durable and constructed in a way that allowed movement of the body.⁴

These functional aspects of clothing are clearly visible in archival documentation. The majority of garments belonging to artisans in early modern Elsinore and listed in the ‘Refashioning the Renaissance’ database were practical, made of plain coarse materials and in modest colours. The stock of clothes of Axel Drejer, a turner from Elsinore, provides a typical example. He owned a number of garments that were well suited for his work. These included four practical linen shirts, a durable leather doublet, a grey doublet and a woollen waistcoat, as well as several pairs of leather breeches and a fur cap made of fox that would keep his head warm in the workshop.⁵ An illustration from a chest from the Copenhagen Turners Guild from around 1658, depicting turners at work with one man turning wood with one bended knee and the other bent over chopping wood, shows what such practical garments might have looked like (Figure 10.2). Both men wear doublets, breeches, slippers and caps that were simply cut, most likely made of long-lasting materials suitable for physical work.

Dressing up in many layers of clothes provided a way to cope with the changing seasons and temperatures. Denmark, like the rest of Europe, was exceptionally cold in this period, due to ‘the little ice age’, which culminated in the sixteenth century.⁶ Consequently, besides being comfortable and practical during physical work outside or indoors, it was necessary that Danish artisans’ clothes were also made from materials that protected the body against changes in temperatures.⁷ Garments made of a range of light and heavy woollens, mixed fabrics or leather could be used for both cold and warm climates.⁸ Hats made of wool or fur, woollen stockings and gloves kept men and women warm and protected against bad weather.

Although artisans’ wardrobes were often relatively modest, many artisans from Elsinore had a variety of clothes for a range of weather conditions. The strap-maker Michel Nielsen, for example, owned a mantle, a suit and a tunic of brown and grey broadcloth, several pairs of old and cheap breeches, a doublet made out of bombazine (a mix of fibres of cotton, linen, silk or hair) and a pair of linen stockings that could be worn in both warm and cold weather. In addition, he had a number of accessories for cold days, including mittens and a fine cap made of marten fur.⁹

Figure 10.2 Turners working in a workshop. Illustration on a guild chest from the turners’ guild of Copenhagen, c. 1658. National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen.

Durable, elastic and warm, leather was also a suitable material for work garments, especially outside where the body had to be protected from wind and rain.¹⁰ The carpenter Hans Sletkrol, for example, had a yellow windproof and waterproof suit of leather, composed of doublet and breeches. He could pair this outfit with a red woollen waistcoat underneath, jerkin, grey tunic and a cap when he had to keep warm.¹¹ Such a leather doublet, suited for his work outdoors, might have looked something like the surviving leather doublet that used to belong to Hugo Grotius (1583–1645), a Dutch Huguenot, today preserved in the collections of Museum Rotterdam (Figure 10.3). Hugo Grotius wore this doublet when he escaped from prison in 1621, dressed as a ‘bricklayer’.

Another way to cope with the changing temperatures was to insert linings of fur or wool in garments. Some of these were suited for spring and autumn weather, such as the mantles owned by the bowl-painter Oluf Nielsen, which were lined with bay (a light wool). Others, such as the tunics, overgowns and caps mentioned in the hook-maker Jacob Krogemager’s inventory, lined with lambskin or fox and marten fur, were used in cold weather.¹²

Figure 10.3 A seventeenth-century leather doublet worn by the Dutch Huguenot Hugo Grotius in 1621. Museum Rotterdam.

Most artisans wore linen shirts under their work clothes. Linen garments protected the outer garments from sweat or grease and, since linen underwear could be laundered, they supported good health and hygiene.¹³ Despite the relatively high cost of linen shirts, Danish artisans in general seem to have many undershirts. The baker Kresten Hermansen’s inventory, for example, mentioned ten linen shirts, some of which were described as ‘clean’ and others ‘dirty’.¹⁴ Visual images suggests that clean white linen was an essential feature of the artisans’ appearance. In a scene from a stained-glass window from 1583 from the collection of Museum Odense (Figure 10.4), probably bequeathed to the shoemakers’ guild by the master shoemaker Jesper Pedersen and installed in the shoemakers’ guildhall in Odense, the central panel shows the master shoemaker Jesper Pedersen in his workshop along with a journeyman and an apprentice. The latter two wear practical white linen shirts with narrow frilled collars and rolled-up sleeves, along with protective black leather aprons.¹⁵

Washable linen aprons were also a common feature of work clothes. The master barber Abraham Raider, for example, owned altogether twelve aprons which he could wear when he treated his patients.¹⁶ The majority of linen aprons in Danish artisan inventories were modest. Such plain aprons, as Currie and Jordan Mitchell-King have shown, could be sewn at home relatively quickly and cheaply (Chapter 9 above). Their condition suggest that aprons, nonetheless, were used extensively until they were completely worn out. The tailor journeyman Anders Poulsen’s chests, for example, contained a linen apron which was so old and worn out that it was ‘not worth writing about’. ¹⁷

Figure 10.4 A shoemaker’s workshop, 1583. Detail from a stained-glass window, probably donated to the Odense shoemaker’s guild by the master shoemaker Jesper Pedersen. Museum Odense.

Professional and respectable

Comfort and practicality were essential considerations when artisans selected clothes for the day’s manual work. However, running a shop and serving clients required that artisans appeared respectable and trustworthy. Creating not only an upright professional image but also one that indicated an elevated social or financial status helped artisans appear attractive and attract customers of a greater status and wealth. Thus, selecting practical yet good quality garments was no doubt good for business.¹⁸

One way of conveying a respectable appearance to customers, clients and other business associates was to appear well groomed, and wear clean clothes and spotless white linen. Many artisans from Elsinore seem to be well aware of the importance of their looks. The personal belongings of the goldsmith Bastian Krammer, for example, included a range of grooming items, such as two hairbrushes and a small case to store personal grooming items.¹⁹ The inventory of the joiner Hans Svitzer and his wife, in turn, included a brush to clean shoes as well as another brush to clean the clothes that were made of materials that could not be washed in water, such as fine silks.²⁰ The organ-builder Johan Lorentz, hired in 1649 by the King Christian IV to rebuild the organ in St Olaf’s church in Elsinore, even kept a clothing brush in his workshop at the church in order to keep his garments clean.²¹ Such examples suggest that maintaining cleanliness and a respectable and unsoiled appearance was an important matter for artisans at work. They allowed these artisans to keep a neat appearance and show their customers and business partners that they were decent businessmen as well as artisans.

A well-groomed appearance and clean, spotless linen were important especially for artisans and small shopkeepers who produced or sold food. For example, when the butcher Troels Pedersen sold meat from his stall, he could wear one of his many linen garments, including five linen shirts, eight linen collars and two linen kerchiefs. Such linen garments presented him as a capable butcher selling high-quality products, fostering his hopes that his customers would keep returning to his shop on the marketplace.²²

It was especially important that linen was clean and fresh on the parts of the garments that were visible, such as on collars or ruffs. This provided an impression of good hygiene and a clean appearance even if the linen undergarments were modest or worn out.²³ The tailor journeyman Erich Lauridsen, for example, had four linen collars and two linen kerchiefs that were defined as more valuable and in better condition than two of his old shirts, which he wore for just hygiene and comfort under his brown woollen suit, not for show.²⁴

Another way to create a professional look and emphasise reliability and success, in addition to maintaining a clean and well-groomed appearance, was to dress up according to the latest fashions. The baker Knud Andersen, for example, had several matching suits that corresponded with the contemporary tastes, including a simple black suit made of half-woollen fabric and a yellow-brown suit. Decorated with visible linen around his neck and worn with a mantle and a costly sable cap, all listed in his inventory, garments such as these allowed him to create a look of prosperous and respectable artisan and make his social position as one of the senior bakers in town visible.²⁵

A well-tailored suit, especially if it was black, was an appropriate garment for a respectable shopkeeper, since black associated the wearer with moral virtues such as trustworthiness and honesty that were regarded as essential qualities of mercantile success.²⁶ Visual images suggest that wearing black was an important sign of status especially for Danish master artisans and shopkeepers of a higher rank. In the stained-glass window from Museum Odense (Figure 10.4), referred to above, for example, the status of the master shoemaker Jesper Pedersen is emphasised by his fashionable ensemble, composed of a tight-fitting black suit in the Spanish style, possibly made of fine wool, and black stockings, a frilled ruff and a modishly tall felted black hat. While the black colour of his clothes associates the shoemaker with wealth, authority and good morals, his well-trimmed beard and groomed appearance enforce the messages about his masculinity. The appearance confirms his position as a skilled master artisan, an important guild member and a citizen in the local society, and a reliable and successful business owner and entrepreneur.²⁷

Appearing well-dressed and in latest fashion was especially important for tailors. Well-tailored clothes made of good-quality materials provided a living advertisement of their skills and their knowledge of dress fashions. The tailor Desmer Skrædder’s wardrobe is a good example of this. He owned, altogether, four linen shirts and several detachable collars, a pair of silk grosgrain breeches, a leather doublet with sleeves of hundskot (a light wool fabric likely produced in Hondschoote in Flanders), a doublet of white linen pinked according to the current fashion, a mantle made of black English broadcloth and a number of items of jewellery, such as a two gold rings and a gold memorial ring.²⁸ The finest of his garments included a mantle of black English cloth and a doublet ‘in the colour of the kings’ (kollør de rois, probably bright tawny brown), trimmed with silk braid and sleeves of hundskot.²⁹ Such garments not only held a considerable value but they enhanced his reputation as a talented tailor who had the ability to inspire his customers and create clothes with trimmings, techniques and materials that responded to the latest innovations in fashion.³⁰

Ambitions, achievements and prosperity

Although the daily clothes of artisans in general did not represent ‘the first flush of fashion’, many local artisans in early modern Denmark were conscious of the need to maintain certain standards of decorum and fashion that were suited to their social standing.³¹ Showing off the finest clothing and knowledge of fashion was important especially for journeymen and master artisans because the quality of the garments was seen as a sign of an individual’s social status and success and played an important role in defining their reputation, career, marriage, wealth and public influence.³²

While young apprentices, who ranked lowest in the artisanal hierarchy, usually wore quite modest clothes since their garments were often provided by the parents or the master, more attention was paid to the kind and quality of clothes when they became journeymen.³³ This becomes clear, for example, from an ordinance issued on 2 November 1622 at Børnehuset, an institution where orphaned and poor children were taught textile crafts in Copenhagen. It shows that, when young journeymen finished a four-year apprenticeship at the institution, they were given a new set of clothing, consisting of a suit of breeches and doublet, a plain woollen mantle, a hat, a pair of shoes, a linen collar and a shirt.³⁴ Receiving the new outfit gave artisans a good start when they were looking for positions in workshops outside the Børnehuset.

A close examination of inventories of some prosperous journeymen suggests that some Danish journeymen had the financial ability as well as the knowledge to dress well. One example is the barber journeyman Herbert Droff who lived and worked in the household of the master barber Jørgen Bardskærer. He appears to have possessed a strong sense of style. His inventory featured a wide variety of clothes and fashion accessories that he could use towards his professional ambitions and social aspirations. Some of his best garments included a grey woollen suit trimmed with braid, a pair of grey breeches and three doublets, made of bombazine (mixed fabric) and trimmed with braid. He also had many outer garments, including a brown mantle, a coat and a sleeveless leather buff coat that bestowed him with a masculine and military yet fashionable look.³⁵ He owned, furthermore, some fine accessories, such as a pair of shoes and slippers, a grey hat with two hatbands, a variety of caps, linen shirts, two fine lace collars, eleven ordinary collars, five kerchiefs, and even a pair of knitted stockings – a novelty at the time.³⁶

Wearing novel fashion accessories and trimmings, such as the stockings, caps and collars worn by the barber journeyman Herbert Droff, was an effective way among artisans to make the tastes for current fashions visible. The senior shoemaker Augustinus Jørgensen, chosen as an alderman for the shoemakers’ guild in 1629, made his status visible by wearing silver buttons on his brown suit and by finishing this with a ruff, a pair of knitted stockings and a black hat which was decorated with a hatband.³⁷

Inventories suggest that many Danish master artisans were aware of the power of clothing to convey professional success and reflect achievements. One of them was Zacharias von Ulnitz, an armourer in Elsinore, who provided the king in 1585 with several pieces of armour.³⁸ His dealings with the king enabled Zacharias to possess several fine and expensive items of clothing that demonstrated his extraordinary professional achievements. His clothing included some exquisite items such as a lavish black pinked velvet doublet, a bright blue damask doublet, a pair of breeches of trip (a woollen velvet) and two Spanish-style caps of silk and gold.³⁹

Some artisans in early modern Elsinore were aware of the social and cultural importance of fashioning an identity also by visual means. The inventory of the prosperous master barber Jurgen von Breda, for example, mentioned ‘a portrait of himself and his wife’. Although the painting has not survived, it is likely that he wore his best garments in the portrait. These included, according to his inventory, a range of fineries and novelties, such as suits of fifskaft and caffa (a type of velvet), a black mantle of broadcloth, a pair of brown silk stockings, various types of silk and fur caps (including fine marten fur), two hats with ribbons, a hatband with small and precious pearls, two feathers for his hat, a pair of black garters in silk and two pairs of shoe roses.⁴⁰

A surviving portrait from 1654 confirms that the most prosperous artisans were eager to use clothes in order to construct a visual identity and present a successful image of themselves and their social rank. The painting represents the art turner Jacob Jensen Nordmand and it was painted by Wolfgang Heimbach, a painter who portrayed also other members of the royal family (Figure 10.5). Jacob was a respected artist and artisan. Originally trained as a smith in Holland, he was employed as an art turner at court by Frederik III in 1649 to work on fine-art objects in materials such as ivory and to teach some of the royal family members to turn.⁴¹ His elevated position not only allowed Jacob to have social interaction with the higher ranks but it also gave him other benefits. For example, according to his own account, when he taught the ueen to turn, he was allowed ‘to eat at the royal majesty’s table for some years’.⁴²

His portrait conveys his professional and personal success through clothes. The turner Jacob Jensen Nordmand is depicted in a lustrous black silk doublet and a velvet jerkin, finished with a fine white linen collar and a pair of linen cuffs. By wearing garments dyed in a good-quality black, the turner Jacob Jensen could associated himself not just with moral virtues of black but also with the material and cultural prestige of the colour. Intense black was the colour of high fashion of the high-ranking elites.⁴³ The only features in the image that reveal his identity as an artisan are the tiny pair of golden tweezers and a memento mori, allegedly made by the art turner himself.⁴⁴ The portrait painting, therefore, manifests both his skills as a turner as well as his extraordinary artisanal position at court, where he climbed the social ladder and eventually became the Master of the Arsenal. He documented his journey and social uprising in his personal accounts which he completed in 1670.⁴⁵

Figure 10.5 Wolfgang Heimbach, Portrait of Jacob Jensen Nordmand, 1654. The Danish Royal Collection, Rosenborg Castle, Copenhagen.

Court artisans, such as Jacob, were also often provided with fine liveries since they were regarded as an extension of the King’s household.⁴⁶ In his personal account, the turner Jacob noted that during the first year of his service he was given four liveries that were ‘each as good as 100 daler’. This was a significant value for one set of clothes, though evidence suggests that Jacob’s own valuation of the clothes might have been slightly exaggerated.⁴⁷

Jacob’s position and social uprising did not go unnoticed. His employment and success at court allowed him to dress in garments that were otherwise considered unsuitable for individuals of unnoble birth and mingle with people way above artisanal rank. While some of his fellow artisans might have looked up to him with admiration, his privileged treatment also probably caused much envy. After noting in his accounts that he had ‘eaten with counts and other great lords and other noble persons which were present in the King´s Court’ and ‘sat at the table with clergymen, and other worldly persons’, he stated that ‘some were good people, but others were resentful’.⁴⁸

Conclusion

Clothes had many functions for artisans in daily life and throughout their professional careers, in relation to their trade or craft as well their social standing. Practicality was naturally one of the primary functions of artisans’ clothing. It was especially important that the clothing worn by artisans and small shopkeepers was suited for physical work and changing weather conditions, because most artisans came from modest backgrounds and their everyday lives were dominated by work. Yet visual, and written evidence suggests that consolidating a respectable image and maintaining a decent look by means of clothing and appearance were equally as important, especially when artisans and local shopkeepers performed their work in public places and dealt with their customers at the marketplace, workshops or shops. Appearing well-groomed and clean while wearing good-quality practical garments was a way to promote decency and to create an image of a reliable and trustworthy craftsman, shopkeeper or entrepreneur.

In this context, the social and cultural significance of fashion was important. Since fine clothing was associated with wealth and status, wearing both well-tailored garments or fashion accessories and novelties that corresponded to the current tastes, such as trimmings in fine lace and silk, ruffs, knitted stockings, hats or fine gloves, was an effective social signal that made their professional success and accomplishments visible in public in the local society. The most prosperous and successful artisans, such as barbers or artists working at court, could even fashion a distinctive look for themselves through visual means by commissioning portraits, providing an extraordinary status for some of the most prestigious craftsmen and artists among the artisan communities of early modern Elsinore.