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Ian Alexander
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 Posted: Sat 19 Jan, 2019 9:51 am Post subject: Sumptuary Law of 1363 |
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Can anyone direct me to a good explanation of the 1363 Act of Diet and Apparel? I can find a copy of the Acts text but when it says some thing like ‘cloth worth no more than 2 marks’ what does that mean in real terms? How does it limit weave, weight, type of material and colour?
Thanks.
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Peter Lyon
Industry Professional
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| Posted: Sat 19 Jan, 2019 10:29 am Post subject: |
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A mark is 2/3 of one pound of silver - literally a pound. So it is still quite a lot of money. I can't say any more as it is too long since I looked at the 1363 act.
Still hammering away
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Ian Alexander
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| Posted: Sat 19 Jan, 2019 1:51 pm Post subject: |
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| Peter Lyon wrote: | | A mark is 2/3 of one pound of silver - literally a pound. So it is still quite a lot of money. I can't say any more as it is too long since I looked at the 1363 act. |
Thanks. Sorry I should have explained better. I didn’t mean what is the real value of a mark, I meant what does that equate to in cloth and what types and colours might be available at that cost. Not specifically 2 marks, that was just an example, I was just lookiing for an article or link that gave a more in-depth explanation of what in practice the different declarations in the Act would give people access to.
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Sean Manning
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| Posted: Sun 20 Jan, 2019 1:07 am Post subject: |
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Hi Ian,
probably the most accessible single source for your question is the book The King's Servants. It Is focused on the time around 1500, but there had been little changes in the fabrics available, the prices, and the names ... just subtle ones like the doublet becoming a 'sleeved vest' and buckram becoming a flax- or hemp-based fabric instead of a cotton-based one, and the great Tudor inflation was just beginning (the silver content of the English penny was the same from William I to Richard III, so an English penny under Edward III means the same as one under Henry VII).
If you want to learn more, you will need a lot of academic books and articles and a working knowledge of at least Latin.
weekly writing ~ material culture
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Ian Alexander
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| Posted: Sun 20 Jan, 2019 5:32 am Post subject: |
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| Sean Manning wrote: | Hi Ian,
probably the most accessible single source for your question is the book The King's Servants. It Is focused on the time around 1500, but there had been little changes in the fabrics available, the prices, and the names ... just subtle ones like the doublet becoming a 'sleeved vest' and buckram becoming a flax- or hemp-based fabric instead of a cotton-based one, and the great Tudor inflation was just beginning (the silver content of the English penny was the same from William I to Richard III, so an English penny under Edward III means the same as one under Henry VII).
If you want to learn more, you will need a lot of academic books and articles and a working knowledge of at least Latin. |
Thanks, i’ll grab a copy!
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This is a standard topic