Peasant Fashion in the Low Countries: Stage 2; Frans Boels

Frans Boels, B. 1555 - 1596, most of his paintings are of the landscape variety, often with Biblical scenes.  He was trained by Hans Bol, his stepfather.  As such, only a handful are of use for this project.  However, as the paintings are accurately dated for the most part, they are particularly useful as they likely show /current/ fashion in the peasant class for the 1590s, unlike the more romanticized versions by the Brueghels for instance. 

• Landscape With Hunters; 1588
• A lovely little painting showing nobles hunting with hounds and I assume guns, with one peasant huntsman running behind with the pack.  There are other visible lower class characters, but they are not visible in detail due to the painting method (Tempera on Parchment); this a theme through his paintings.  The fashion in his artwork is much more modern and probably reflects current clothing more accurately than many of the genre paintings covered in this research.
• Additional topics of interest could be the hunting attire of the nobles, horse tack, the dogs (sighthounds, it seems), spears, and personally I think the bridge to the far right of the painting is somewhat interesting. 
  
• 1; Huntsman
• Blue broad brimmed hat, with the brim slightly upturned.
• Red Jacket.  This appears to be a fairly unfitted body, but also not particularly loose.  The sleeves are closely fitted and the skirts cut on and only hip length.
• Blue breeches.  At this point, we are seeing a lot of what should probably be labeled as "Venetians"; Hosen of various fullness at the top, which taper to a closely fitted knee, and fastening just under the knee.  I don't believe a codpiece is included, but could be wrong.
  
• Red stockings/netherstocks.
• Black low shoes
• 2 (this and the following figures have almost no detail to them, so anything but the garment colour is conjecture)
  
• No hat visible
• Blue short jacket
• Red breeches.
• Shirt may be peeking between doublet and hosen.
• 3
• Broad brimmed straw hat?
• Red doublet,
• Blue breeches.
• 4
• Red tall hat with very little brim, potentially a thrum hat?
• Black doublet or coat.  
• Legs not visible.
  
  
  
• An Extensive Landscape with Peasants Merrymaking, 1591
• While primarily a landscape showing a rather nice town, on the two paths leading out of town there are groups of the target demographic, albeit rather small.  This particular work was done as gouache on vellum, and again isn't as detailed as I would like.
• There aren't many useful non-fashion details, beyond some livestock (goats and pigs, I think) and one or two pieces of pottery.
• 1
• Black slouch hat.
• Medium brown doublet
• Knee breech style hosen, reaching to mid calf.  
• Brown stockings
• Black shoes.
• 2
• Brown cap with upturned brim and round top
• Aqua doublet with sleeves gathered at the head and below elbow.  
• Garment underneath is dark red, showing only at the forearm out of the doublet.
• Red full hosen, possibly with no codpiece.
• 3
• Black hat.
• Black coat to the knee.  Details unknown
• Brown hosen.
• 4
• Brown round domed and fat brimmed hat.
• Dull red doublet.  Sleeves are moderately full, and it is only hip length, with a fairly boxy cut.
• White full hose, with codpiece visible.
• 5
• Black/dark grey hat.  This honestly looks like a top hat with a wide and upturned brim.
• Brown doublet of good fit.
• Aqua full hosen.  Codpiece undetermined.
• 6; Drinker
• Black beanie type hat
  
• Pale yellow doublet of only waist length.  The shirt is peeking out at the belly.
  
• Green knee length hosen, fairly loose--like galligaskins
• Black lower hosen/stockings
• Narrow black belt with a knife at left hip
• 7, Dancer
• Red cap 
• Pink doublet, hip length and with shaped cut on skirts.  Sleeves may have some gathering.
• Red full hosen.
• 8
• No hat visible
• Red doublet, waist length and loosely fitted.
• Blue knee breeches, with a visible codpiece.
• Green lower hosen/stockings
• 9; Sante!
• Black cap
• Black doublet
• 10
•  Black cap
• Blue doublet of the waist and of modeate fit
• Mouse grey/brown knee breeches with codpiece
• Lighter grey stockings.
• 11, Snogger
• Whitish slouch cap
• Grey pleat skirted jerkin.  Skirts are pleated all the way around, and cover to above the knee.
• Blue doublet, sleeves only visible.
• Grey hosen, unknown form.
  
  
  
• A deer hunt in a wooded landscape, a village and mountains beyond, 1590s
•  Gouache on vellum, laid on copper.  This painting depicts a landscape with several hunting parties in the foreground.  While obviously the majority of hte hunters are nobles--including one lady riding sidesaddle--there are a few "peasant" huntsmen.
• Potential points of interest include the noble's weapons and attire, and horse caparison
• 1; running man.  His clothing is likely more on the modern side.
  
• Grey top hat.
• Grey doublet
• Rich blue knee breeches
• Black stockings
• 2; Retriever
• Black cap of some low sort.
• Black doublet coming barely  to the waist.  Sleeves are moderate.
• White shirt peeking between hose and doublet
• Red knee breeches
• Black stockings
• 3, Old Guy with Spear
• Black somewhat shapeless appearing hat.
• Red jacket to the hips.  Relatively rectangular and open in the front.
• Black doublet
• Shirt peeking out under doublet
• Blue Trousers!  These are mid calf in length
• Red stockings or hosen underneath.
• Black shoes
• 4, Colum
• Blue slouch hat or bonnet
• Red doublet
• Black hosen of undetermined type.
• He also is carrying a net.
  
  
  
• Winter; 1594
• Gouache on Vellum.  Loads to unpack here, or would be if I could find a high resolution version of the painting.  Even so, there's some useful details, plus a pair of German musicians (I love the drummer's outfit), carts, furniture, and games on ice. Also a basket pack.
• 1
• Green hat with a somewhat floppy brim
• Red short sleeved doublet.
• Another long sleeved doublet underneath.  Kind of a greyish brown.
• Green knee breeches, matched in colour to the hat.
• Black netherstocks
• 2
• Round topped black hat with a brim
• Pleat skirted coat.  Knee length and pleated heavily pleated cut on skirt.  Sleeves are moderately fit with no signs of gathering.
• Dark grey full hosen.
• Black shoes
• 3, Herder
• White broad brimmed hat
• Red jacket to the hips.
• Green...Galligaskins?
• Dun grey stockings
• 4 , Butcher
• Greyish hat, no visible brim
• Red doublet
• White shirt peeking between doublet and hose.
• Blue knee breech hosen,
• grey stockings
  
• 5, Leaner
• Black hat with brim and round dome.
• Medium brown doublet of close but rectangular fit.
• Green knee breeches, possibly with codpiece
• Black stockings
• 6, Traveler/Hunter
• Head not visible
• Brown pleat skirted coat, to mid thigh a least.
• Black hosen, type not visible
• Semi-cylindrical pack basket.  Really cool.
• 7, Rich dude.  Do not include in survey
  
• Black hat, looking almost like a morion.
  
• Slate coat in a fairly geometric cut, like a cassock or shaube
  
• Brown doublet
  
• Red hosen, probably only knee length
• Ruff at neck.
• 8, Kneeling
• Black hat of some ilk
• Yellow doublet
• Green knee length hosen
• Light blue-grey stockings
• 9
• Tan very cylindrical hat, almost fez-like
• Dusty rose cassock to the hips.  There is some swing to the back
• Dirty white trousers
• 10
• Black flat cap
• White doublet 
• Grey breeches,
• Brown stockings.
  
  
  
• Wooded River Landscape with Travellers by a Wayside Cross, 1594
•  "Paint" over graphite on vellum.  This is a tiny painting, only a few inches in each direction, but thankfully there is a good, high resolution version available.  We have a number of guys here, but they do not appear to be coded as "Flemish Peasants", as many of them appear to be wearing what seam to be unpaned round hosen, and cassocks.
• 1, Rider
• Black hat of unknown shape.
• Blue doublet.
• Tan knee breech hosen.
• Red stockings
• 2, Waver (Do not include in survey)
  
• Blue cap.
• Grey cassock to mid thigh.  The sleeves are close, and the body panels would appear to be trapazoidal.
• Brown round hose
• Pale blue or grey stockings.
• 3, Sitting (Do not include)
  
• Black broad brimmed hat
• Brown coat of some form.  I cannot tell the details as he's sitting down.  At least thigh length, and possibly open in the front
• Blue hosen, possibly galligaskins or unpaned round hose.
• 4, Hauler of...???
• I don't know what's going on with his head...he has a bush on it?  A shedding sheep?
• Rose upper garment to the hip.  Grown on skirts, possibly slight gathering or swing to the back, and sleeves of moderate fit.
• Brown Galligaskin or loose knee length hosen.
• Blue stockings
• Black shoes.
• There are several others on the boats but details aren't great.  One does appear to be wearing a thrum hat, however.
  
  
  
• Resting During the Harvest, 1590s
•  Gouache on paper, laid on panel.  A piece quite familiar to those who ave been following this project, as the composition and subject matter is quite close to a couple of Brueghel Elder's paintings.  In it, we have a few workers resting from gathering the harvest, and a wagon full of bundles of hay.  A town, or potentially just a manor house, and rolling fields are visible in the background.  Again, the detail isn't so great.
  
• The wagon and harnessing of the horses could be of interest, as is the fence around the building
• 1, By himself
• Brown broad brim hat, perhaps.  
• Red doublet, to the waist and of fairly close fit.
• Yellow or buff breeches.
• Grey stockings
• 2, Drinker
• No hat, or it's hanging down his back from a cord.
  
• Red doublet, closely fit, and to the waist.
• Blue breeches
• Red stockings
• 3, 
• Black broad brimmed hat
• Brown jerkin to the waist, probably made of leather
• Red doublet
• Greenish-blue shorts...they don't make it to the knee.  
• Barefoot and no stockings/netherstocks.
• 4
• Black hat of some ilk.
• Blue doublet, to the hips. Fit is close.
• Grey breeches, which appear quite well fit.
• Red stockings
• 5
• Light purple doublet?
• Medium Brown breeches
• Blue stockings.
  
•  6, Shepherd
  
• Brown cap
•  Red doublet of closer fit
• Yellow hosen to the knee
• Green netherstocks?
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  © John Frey, 2024. The Author of this work retains full copyright for this material.  Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this document for non-commercial private research or educational purposes provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are preserved on all copies