Gloves are accessories we take for granted in the 21st century. Today we wear gloves when we need protection from harsh elements like gardening, construction, and the cold. Gloves are mass produced so we buy them in a store and when they get dirty or damaged we throw them away and buy some more. I believe that when we think of recreating period gloves, we make assumptions about design and use based upon what we feel and know about modern gloves.
In 1992 I had the opportunity to examine actual pairs of surviving Elizabethan gloves in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England. I realized that most of the glove designs for that time period were for ascetic purposes rather than functionality. The nobles wore gloves daily as part of their outfit and many were elaborately decorated with lace, embroidery and beadwork of pearls and precious gems.
One of the biggest design differences between gloves present day and many of the English gloves made during the 16th and 17th century is the length of the fingers. Surviving gloves from the Elizabethan period have a worn spot in the finger stall where the finger actually placed. It is recorded in wardrobe accounts that the stalls of the fingers of many gloves extended 2 to 3 inches beyond the finger tip making the fingers appear long (Collins, 26). This additional finger length was inspired by Queen Elizabeth I, the reigning Queen in England from 1558 to 1603. “Sovereigns were the models of fashion” (Beck, 87). An eyewitness account in a written statement of Andre Hurault, Sieur de Maisse, Ambassador, on a visit in 1597 describes Elizabeth’s hands as such, “Having told her at some point that she was well advertised of everything that happened in the world, she replied that her hands were very long by nature and might, an nescis longas Regibus esse manus; whereupon she drew off her glove and showed me her hand, which is very long and more than mine by more than three broad fingers. It was formerly very beautiful, but is now very thin, although the skin is still most fair” (Arnold, 9). Gloves to fit this hand, therefore, had to have long finger stalls and since Queen Elizabeth had long fingers the style was long fingers and what better way to do this than have your gloves designed with long finger stalls. Surviving gloves from the late 16th century illustrate that others sought to emulate the hands of Queen Elizabeth. Of course, not all the gloves made during this time period had the long fingers but it is one of the outstanding features to note when making your own pair of Elizabethan gloves.
In 1992 I had the opportunity to examine actual pairs of surviving Elizabethan gloves in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England. I realized that most of the glove designs for that time period were for ascetic purposes rather than functionality. The nobles wore gloves daily as part of their outfit and many were elaborately decorated with lace, embroidery and beadwork of pearls and precious gems.
One of the biggest design differences between gloves present day and many of the English gloves made during the 16th and 17th century is the length of the fingers. Surviving gloves from the Elizabethan period have a worn spot in the finger stall where the finger actually placed. It is recorded in wardrobe accounts that the stalls of the fingers of many gloves extended 2 to 3 inches beyond the finger tip making the fingers appear long (Collins, 26). This additional finger length was inspired by Queen Elizabeth I, the reigning Queen in England from 1558 to 1603. “Sovereigns were the models of fashion” (Beck, 87). An eyewitness account in a written statement of Andre Hurault, Sieur de Maisse, Ambassador, on a visit in 1597 describes Elizabeth’s hands as such, “Having told her at some point that she was well advertised of everything that happened in the world, she replied that her hands were very long by nature and might, an nescis longas Regibus esse manus; whereupon she drew off her glove and showed me her hand, which is very long and more than mine by more than three broad fingers. It was formerly very beautiful, but is now very thin, although the skin is still most fair” (Arnold, 9). Gloves to fit this hand, therefore, had to have long finger stalls and since Queen Elizabeth had long fingers the style was long fingers and what better way to do this than have your gloves designed with long finger stalls. Surviving gloves from the late 16th century illustrate that others sought to emulate the hands of Queen Elizabeth. Of course, not all the gloves made during this time period had the long fingers but it is one of the outstanding features to note when making your own pair of Elizabethan gloves.