Figure 1.--We do not know who the artist is here. We might guess the painting is English, perhaps fating to the 1830s, but we have no real idea. Surely the child is a girl. What interests us here is the use of pink ribbons on the leading strings. Did the color have gender connotations. Also notice the ringlet curls. We are insure to what extent boys and girls wore them in the early 19th century. Identifying this image will add some insights to these issues.

Some HBC contributors have sent several fascinating art works, but have not provided any background information on these works or even who the artist was. Without knowing the artist, it is difficult to use the image in our assesmment of historical or national trends so we can better undestand fashion trends in the years bdefore the development of photography. We would be very interested in any help HBC readers could offer in identifying and dating these artistic works. Here reader comments are welcome. Either help in identifying these works or insights on the fashions illustrated. We have divided these images up chronologically, but many come from the 19th century. Our chronological assessment of course is not definitive as the paintings are unidentified. This is especially true for the paintings before the 19th century.

Medieval Era

Renaissance

17th Century

18th Century

19th Century

20th Century

Created: March 12, 2003
Last updated: March 12, 2003