Figure 1.-- This German class was some kind of gymnasium (secondary school). The boys look about 12 years old. Sailor suits were still being worn. These boys are dressed rather formally in suits with short knee pants or short trousers, but only a few boys wear ties. One boy ears a floppy bow. The boy with the floppy bow is also wearing short black socks instead of the much more common black long stockings. A few of the boys wear only white shirts with open collars or at least without neckties. The class portrait is undated. HBC would guess it was taken in the mid-1920s. One reader guesses it might have been taken in the early-30s.

A HBC contributor has passed along this German class portrait. While it is easy to comment on the clothes the boy are wearing, our assessment is complicated by the fact that the school and class is not identified and the portrait is not dated. For this reason we have placed the image in our age section as age is the easiest element to estimate. We might be off by ayear, but it is unlikely that we will be much further off. We will attempt to assess other elements of this portrait, but would welcome reader input on this. Feel free to offer any insights which may occur to you.

School Type

This German class was almost certainly some kind of gymnasium (secondary school). The background provides no clues as to their school. We say that primarily because the boys for the mot part are so smartly dressed. It was mostly middle-class boys as well as a smaller number of upper-class who went oin to secondary education. We do not think working-class boys would dresses like this. A reader writes, "The boy in the front row, second to left is the only one wearing socks, Eton like collar and floppy bow tie. Since Germany was a very stratified society then, I wonder if the clothes meant the boy came from a wealthier family or maybe just more conservative." Perhaps but this could have also just been a fashion conscious middle-class mother. Our reader, however, makes an important point. The German state secondary schools were so good, that most well-to-do Germans sent their children to the state schools rather than to private schools. This was also common even for for aristocratic families.

Age

The boys look about 12 years old. Perhaps they might be 11-years old. And depending when the portrait was taken in the school year, there may be a mix of 11 and 12 year olds. I don't think, however, that they were 13-year olds, although that is not impossible.

Chronology

The class portrait is undated. HBC would guess it was taken in the mid-1920s. One reader guesses it might have been taken in the early 30s. A German reader who collects old photogaphs estimtes that this portrait comes from the very early-1920s.

Clothing

Sailor suits were still being worn. We see four boys wearing sailor suits which was fairly common for the younger boys at a secondary school. Sailor suits were popular in middle class families and it was mostly the middle class that sent their children on to secondary schools. Note that they are not only sailor syits, but rather smart ones. These boys are dressed rather formally in suits with short knee pants or short trousers, but only a few boys wear ties. One boy wears a floppy bow. This was more popular for the little boys in their First Day portraits. Two boys what look like very large bow ties. These bows is one reason we believe this is a 1920s portrait. Bows were less common in the 30s, although we do see aristocratic boys wearing them. Notice all the boys wearing open Schiller collars. This was a very popular style in the 1920s and 30s. The boy with the floppy bow is also wearing short black socks instead of the much more common black long stockings. A few of the boys wear only white shirts with Schiller (open) collars or at least without neckties. Also notice that the boys ll wear high-top shoes. This also speaks to the early- or mid-1920s.

Social Class

A reader writes, "Your point about class differences rather than chronology accounting for the different styles the boys are wearing is very interesting. This point hadn't really sunk in as it should have in my previous assessments. But a question: why would the floppy bow and the ankle socks be more upper-class than the open-necked shirts and long stockings of the other boys? I guess I can see that the necktie might be a bit more formal and upper-class, but the bare knees seem less formal to me than the long stockings. Are we getting mixed signals here?" Well first of all I wouldn't call these boys "upper class". Some might be as private schools were not very common in Germany. Most of these boys are middle-class. I would give much emphasis to the boy with bare knees. He is the only boy there not wearing long stockings. I think upper-class were more likely to wear floppy bows because of the upper-class conservatism. I don't think the Schiller (open) collar had class conotations. It was a very popular style very widely worn in Germany.

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Created: 10:47 PM 2/25/2009
Last updated: 4:19 PM 2/28/2009