The Armour Archive

What color are Braies, the chauses come in lots of colors. Any evidence ? of colored braies


Thanks,

Thorstenn.

All evidence I have ever seen is white, white oh & white.

white mainly. ive seen some 15thc ones different colors

White is the standard, just as it was until relatively recently in the US.

Germany and central Europe seem to be the center of colored undies.

In Albrecht Durer's Martyrdom of the 10,000 you will find many colored 'Speedos'.



When I first saw pics of colored undies, I'd wondered if they were mainly on the bad guys, since they were worn by a couple of convicts being crusified next to Jesus.

Martyrs are looked at as good guys, so it isn't only bad guys wearing them.

My braies are white linen, from Historic Enterprises. As much as I like them, I am tired of people telling me they look like diapers, so if colored braies were indeed used in the 14th-15th century, I'd be a lot happier to switch to those.

Richard

Hmm, I've also read a description of brown braies ...

Wolf wrote:white mainly. ive seen some 15thc ones different colors

There are some German paintings with black braies; I have read that the black was a paint over likely the Victorians were offended.

Do some searches this topic has been discussed before. Someone, Peder? put up several dozen 15th cent pics of colored braies, mostly black, a few blue or tan. As was pointed, out the colored braie pics seem to be mostly german or swiss.

Alcyoneus wrote:In Albrecht Durer's Martyrdom of the 10,000 you will find many colored 'Speedos'.
...
When I first saw pics of colored undies, I'd wondered if they were mainly on the bad guys, since they were worn by a couple of convicts being crusified next to Jesus.

Martyrs are looked at as good guys, so it isn't only bad guys wearing them.

Maybe they were being martyred because they weren't wearing white braies.

Richard Blackmoore wrote:My braies are white linen, from Historic Enterprises. As much as I like them, I am tired of people telling me they look like diapers, so if colored braies were indeed used in the 14th-15th century, I'd be a lot happier to switch to those.

Richard

They woudn't be making fun of your diapers if you were wearing a dress like a real man.

Richard Blackmoore wrote:I am tired of people telling me they look like diapers

I told the last guy who poked fun at me for wearing braies and hosen that he is just not man enough to wear a fashion he is not familiar with and that ended that round of pick on the period guy

Until recently I made my braies from older garments that had gotten too worn or stained to use as outer layers anymore. Many of mine were just old linen shirts of different colours that made it from the garb bag to the undie makin bin. I have NO actual justification for this practice, it just felt like a reasonable use of materials that I didnt want to throw away. Felt like medieval recycling...

Not that I consider my persona more monied... white undies all that way!!

My braies are undyed brown linen. Surely someone was price-conscious enough to wear em unbleached.

Yup - I concur that white for 14th c (with a clear change in style as the clothes get tighter thru the c). There are (as mentioned several times above) paintings that show black/blue etc undies in the 15th c. The style is Very different by the 15th c.

There seems to be some evidence that they weren't just linen - but that some were made from wool, as well. The Hull find should be able to give extant evidence on that - soon, I hope! "The History of Underclothes" by C. Willett and Phillis Cunnington gives an overview of braies. About 4 1/2 pages worth.