What People Wore: 1,800 Illustrations from Ancient Times to the Early Twentieth Century (Paperback)

by Douglas Gorsline (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Almost two thousand black and white illustrations outline the changing world of people's clothing from ancient times to the early 20th century. This is a fine survey of clothing styles and history, packed with plate after plate of style examples for both men and women. -- Midwest Book Review

Product Description

Fascinating panorama of styles — from diaphanous gowns of Egyptian royalty to 1920s wardrobe of American flapper. Accessories and hairstyles. Illustrations.

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Product Details Paperback: 288 pages Publisher: Dover Publications (August 22, 1994) Language: English ISBN-10: 0486281620 ISBN-13: 978-0486281629 Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 8.8 x 0.8 inches Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #320,977 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Look Inside This Book

Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Flap | Back Cover

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Citations (learn more)

4 books cite this book:

• The Blood Axe : Story of Viking Kings Knut & Olav by Eileene Harrison Beer in Back Matter
• The Writer's Essential Desk Reference by Writer's Digest Books (Firm) on page 149
• The Knot's Complete Guide to Weddings by Carley Roney on page 34
• Celtic Magic (Llewellyn's World Magic Series) by D.J. Conway in Back Matter

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	49% buy the item featured on this page: What People Wore: 1,800 Illustrations from Ancient Times to the Early Twentieth Century 3.8 out of 5 stars (13) $14.21
	23% buy What People Wore When: A Complete Illustrated History of Costume from Ancient Times to the Nineteenth Century for Every Level of Society 4.8 out of 5 stars (4) $19.77
	10% buy Pictorial Encyclopedia of Historic Costume: 1200 Full-Color Figures 4.0 out of 5 stars (3) $11.21
	9% buy A History of Costume 4.0 out of 5 stars (11) $10.85

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Customer Reviews

13 Reviews 5 star:  (7) 4 star:  (2) 3 star:  (1) 2 star:  (1) 1 star:  (2)           Average Customer Review 3.8 out of 5 stars (13 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 22 of 22 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book For Research, April 26, 2000 By  Ray Ritch (PA, USA) - See all my reviews This book is excellent! The pictures are very detailed, the information is substantial, and the book is extremely organized, which is also a good thing. I especially like his focus on the hair styles and clothing accessories. It is the best book I've been able to find (near and abroad) on historic costumes and outfits. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in history, clothes, and hair styles. 13 of 13 people found the following review helpful: 3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed bag, November 9, 2003 By  Christine Doyle (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    This book is the culmination of research done by Mr. Gorsline. He has recreated the illustrations based upon research done primarily in the New York Library system. Many of his drawings have a reference... but that reference isn't formatted in such a way you could actually find out anything useful. For that reason it's not a particularly good choice for serious "historical" costumers. But if you're willing to accept that limitation, it is a nice reference, particularly the collected drawings of hair and head coverings. 9 of 9 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars Great reference, especially for early clothing and hair, June 18, 2003 By  Elizabeth (Milpitas, CA USA) - See all my reviews I received this book as a gift, and have found it very useful in creating accurate costumes, especially for the Medieval styles. The later (Victorian, Edwardian, etc.) chapters have been less useful to me because they offer limited examples of a few different garments from each time period. Fashions changed so much more quickly after the Renaissance, that a more detailed look at the styles of each decade, or each year, in each locality after the 16th century, would be much more useful. The chapters on medieval and ancient fashions, however, are extremely useful to me, because the images are taken from contemporary manuscripts and illustrations and represent a time period for which we know comparatively little about the garments most people wore, although research continues. The drawings make it easy to see the line of each garment and its shape, which is very helpful in drafting patterns for such garments, and the illustrations of hairstyles and head coverings are also very clear and understandable. This book is most useful as one book in a library of costume publications, as it does not contain much, if any, information regarding fabric weaves, colors, embroidery, etc.		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars What People Wore: 1,800 Illustrations ... In fashion, it is best to understand the history behind the concept of clothing. Where did such items originate, where do they have a place in today's fashion time line... Read more Published 7 days ago by D. Jean How 1.0 out of 5 stars Poor pictures, no use for costumers I really don't believe the good reviews on this book. When I received the book, I thought it couldn't be true. Read more Published 14 months ago by Zuzana Kraemerova 5.0 out of 5 stars Great for images for a timeline book I brought this book for images to use for a history timeline book for an early elementary school student. Read more Published 14 months ago by Melissa J. Newman 5.0 out of 5 stars What People Wore Very informative and exactly what I was looking for: dress for nearly two thousand years and attached pictures. Published 21 months ago by Romana C. Guillotte 5.0 out of 5 stars Good secondary resource The black and white illustrations are well researched, and many are reminiscent of fashion plates and other primary resources. Read more Published on May 16, 2007 by Hedera Femme 2.0 out of 5 stars Designs minus beauty This book contains a great deal of visual information on clothing throughout the world and through the ages. It makes a good reference. Read more Published on February 14, 2003 by Raphael Collin 1.0 out of 5 stars Not even a tertiary source - redrawings of redrawings I do not recommend this volume for anyone doing serious research on costume. I would recommend going with sources closer to the original. Published on October 10, 2001 by Pat Yarrow 5.0 out of 5 stars Probably one of the 2 best costume books ever compiled! If you design costumes or want to do any type of research on them ... you cannot survive without this book. Read more Published on March 24, 2000 by Anne-Marie 5.0 out of 5 stars Best Reference Book Every library has this book; every one. But if you'd just pull out that card and take a look at the last recent signout date, as I did, you might be surprised. Read more Published on January 19, 2000 4.0 out of 5 stars A great book 4 anyone who needs a costume This book is cool for anybody who's interested in clothes from a long time ago. There's stuff on ancient people in Greece and Egypt plus all over Europe and in America too... Read more Published on March 18, 1999 Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications (August 22, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486281620
• ISBN-13: 978-0486281629
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 8.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #320,977 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book For Research, April 26, 2000

By	Ray Ritch (PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This book is excellent! The pictures are very detailed, the information is substantial, and the book is extremely organized, which is also a good thing. I especially like his focus on the hair styles and clothing accessories. It is the best book I've been able to find (near and abroad) on historic costumes and outfits. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in history, clothes, and hair styles.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed bag, November 9, 2003

By	Christine Doyle (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is the culmination of research done by Mr. Gorsline. He has recreated the illustrations based upon research done primarily in the New York Library system. Many of his drawings have a reference... but that reference isn't formatted in such a way you could actually find out anything useful. For that reason it's not a particularly good choice for serious "historical" costumers. But if you're willing to accept that limitation, it is a nice reference, particularly the collected drawings of hair and head coverings.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great reference, especially for early clothing and hair, June 18, 2003

By	Elizabeth (Milpitas, CA USA) - See all my reviews

I received this book as a gift, and have found it very useful in creating accurate costumes, especially for the Medieval styles. The later (Victorian, Edwardian, etc.) chapters have been less useful to me because they offer limited examples of a few different garments from each time period. Fashions changed so much more quickly after the Renaissance, that a more detailed look at the styles of each decade, or each year, in each locality after the 16th century, would be much more useful. The chapters on medieval and ancient fashions, however, are extremely useful to me, because the images are taken from contemporary manuscripts and illustrations and represent a time period for which we know comparatively little about the garments most people wore, although research continues. The drawings make it easy to see the line of each garment and its shape, which is very helpful in drafting patterns for such garments, and the illustrations of hairstyles and head coverings are also very clear and understandable. This book is most useful as one book in a library of costume publications, as it does not contain much, if any, information regarding fabric weaves, colors, embroidery, etc.