English: Doublet, 1635–1640 V&A Museum no. 177-1900

Techniques – Glazed linen, embroidered with linen thread

Place – England

Dimensions – Width 71.12 cm (maximum, elbow to elbow), Depth 44.5 cm (maximum)

Object Type – Doublets formed part of the ensemble of clothing worn by men in the early 17th century. A pair of breeches in matching fabric would have been worn with this doublet, with a cape to complete the gentleman's outfit.

Materials & Making – The linen has not been dyed but bleached and glazed instead to give a uniform colour and a firm texture on which to embroider. Back stitch, French knots and couching in fine linen thread comprise a pattern of geometric and floral motifs. Linen thread, hand plaited and sewn over a wooden core in a technique known as passementerie, forms the decorative buttons.

Time – A doublet of the late 1630s had a waistline at the natural level with large flaps or tabs, as they were known, falling below. Typical of the period, are the back seam and seams of the sleeves. They have been deliberately left unstitched to allow the billowing shirt to show through from underneath. Fashions of the 1630s featured a high collar over which the falling band of fine linen and lace could drape becomingly.