Sunday 20 January 2008

English were dedicated followers of French fashion 1,400 years ago

The British, it seems, have assiduously followed European fashion trends for years. It now turns out that it may have been for centuries.

Stylish Anglo-Saxon women, for example, wore front-fastening coats clasped with brooches that were common on the Continent at the time and would not be completely out of place on the catwalks of Paris today.

Penelope Walton Rogers is an archaeologist who has undertaken a significant study of Anglo-Saxon graves and settlements and come up with some surprising findings.

Evidence pieced together from more than 1,700 graves shows that followers of fashion in the middle of the 6th century wore outfits typical of northern France and territories west of the Rhine.

Read the rest of this article...