Thursday, April 24, 2014
X-Rays Of Corsets
How good corsets are made depends on how you want to shape your body. There are different ways to put in the boning, depending on if you want just a cinched in waist, a v-shape to your upper body etc. The x-rays of Victorian women in corsets below shows a few different ways to do this, and how the body shapes after the garment. The pictures were taken in 1908 by the French doctor Ludovic O'Followell. They appeared in the medical paper Le Corset and helped influence the creation of more flexible corsets.
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This is really interesting, never seen an x-ray of someone wearing a corset before. So cool, strangely, I would frame one of these and hang it up - like of myself wearing a corset, haha. I don't know why, it just sounds cool and interesting to look at. I can't even imagine how the first corsets must have been so hard to wear, a lot harder than they are now since we have so much more information and abilities to make them. Plus wearers of them today don't have all the tons of other clothing pieces on top of the corset as they wore back then as well - unless their performing usually. Very interesting, I like this :)) Happy Thursday peach Xxxx
ReplyDeletevery interesting....I've actually researched what wearing such a tight corset can do to one's health and gave up on the idea:) but visually it is very appealing.
ReplyDeleteI've done a lot of corset-studying too, and once I red about a girl in the 18th century who was famous for her slim waist. She died in her early twenties, and when they did an autopsy they found out that her liver had been pierced by two corset bones... I do love corsets though, and if you don't try to actually tie it so hard it might kill you, they can be quite comfortable! :) xox
DeleteWow! Very interesting post! I just found your blog today via pinterest for Faberge Friday. My husband and I LOVE Faberge eggs and have always tried to see as many as possible. I was going through your posts and this one caught my eye. I love to read romance novels from the Regency period where they talk a lot about corsets so these pictures were definite eye opening!!
ReplyDeleteHello! Glad you liked this! I like both corsets and romance novels too, and if you find a well made corset it can feel really good to wear one too! :) When I studied at Stockholm University I wrote my BA-essay In Art History about Fabergé's Imperial Easter Eggs, so it was after that I decided to go through them all - one each Friday - here on my blog. So far I have never seen one in real life though... Need to go to the Heremitage Museum in St. Petersburg some day... :) xox
DeleteThe xrays show how the skeleton was altered - the lower ribs are really squeezed in. Given the date of the photos -1908 - it is likely that the woman "in the picture" had worn a corset since 13 or so. Therefore her ribs were used to being laced if?
ReplyDeleteIl faut souffrir d'être belle. ( You muist suffer to be beautiful)
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Exactly! Even though fully grown people can alter their ribs by wearing corsets for a long time, I guess it was better to start wearing them at a young age, while your bones were still soft and easier to alter, to get that small waist. The things we have done - and still do - for beauty... :) xox
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