Period Ottoman Coats Survey

asim al-talib (mka Woodrow Jarvis Hill)

asim@mindspring.com
Last Edited March the Sixth, A.S. XLI

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Goals

I wanted to do three things with this survey:

• Provide references for building period patterns from source garments,

• Analyze data for sorting out possible changes in designs over SCA-period, and
• Gather information that would aid in my hypothesis that period coats did not subscribe to a
specific pattern, or even sets of patterns.

Note that this survey is far from detailed. Although we are blessed with a surfeit of extent clothing to
view, all the pieces are the period equivalent of haute couture, and may or may not reflect the realities
of daily clothing for the majority of people, including nobles, in period urban Ottoman society. 2D
images also lack details that aid in pattern reconstruction. Some examples include, but are not limited
to:

• What seams, if any, exist on the back and/or shoulders? (note that some Ottoman garments
have been observed to have shoulder seams on only one shoulder)
• Which body parts, if any, where the various sections of the coat were designed to fit with? For
example, does the tip of the lower-body triangle gore start on the waist, the hip, or in-between?

Also, to aid on cataloging, we will be breaking down dating into timecodes, as listed above. This is so
that we can sort out dates, and avoid the hodge-podge of dating ranges (century, half-century, year
range of ruler, exact year) that exists amongst sources. The student needing additional detail is
encouraged to follow the sources listed.

In gathering this data, I focus upon major tailoring pattern issues, as notated by seamlines and related
points. By and large, I ignore fabric choices, linings, hemming, sleeve lengths, collars, and other bits of
data that might be applicable to the point of clothing re-creation, but might also obscure the main point
of re-producing overall coat patterns. The potential re-creator should look to this survey as a
beginning, and not as a final word on the topic(s) at hand.
Timecodes for Coats Survey Sheet

16th Century (1500s) : A

15th Century (1400s) : B

1st quarter (xx00-xx25) : 1

2st quarter (xx26-xx50), also 1st half : 2
3st quarter (xx51-xx75) : 3
4st quarter (xx76-xx99), also 2nd half : 4

Length
Date Reference Page (cm) Notable elements
A1 PGL B10 140.5 "Base" coat
A1 TT Illo 6 87 Angle of front opening
A1 TT Illo 9 158.5 High start of side gore
Illo
A1 TT 11 87 Layout of sides and hip gore
Illo
A3 TT 15 150 Hip "bell"
Illo
A3 TT 20 137 Larger sleeves
A2 ASSM 194

Reference
ID Work LibraryThing Link

The Topkapi Saray Mu- http://www.librarything.com/work-

TT seum: Textiles info.php?book=302123
Palace of Gold and Light :
Treasures from the Top- http://www.librarything.com/work-
PGL kapi, Istanbul info.php?book=7614

The age of Sultan Süley- http://www.librarything.com/work-

ASSM man the Magnificent info.php?book=7597
Bibliography

Works Cited

TT: The Topkapi Saray Museum: Textiles

PGL: Palace of Gold and Light : Treasures from the Topkapi, Istanbul
ASSM : The age of Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent

Works Consulted

Splendors of the Ottoman Empire

The Age of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent
Empire of the Sultans : Ottoman art from the Khalili collection
Style and Status
P Magazine (Issue 3, Spring/Summer 2000)