2008
Bourgeois Pride and Princely Splendour.
Costumes from the Sixteenth to Eighteenth Century
20 April - 2 November 2008
daily 2.00 p.m. - 5.30 p.m.

2008 Bourgeois Pride and Princely Splendour. Costumes from the Sixteenth to Eighteenth Century 20 April - 2 November 2008 daily 2.00 p.m. - 5.30 p.m. The Abegg-Stiftung presents an exhibition of important historic costumes from the collections of the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt and the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden in Germany. The exhibition shows a group of around twenty bourgeois costumes from the seventeenth century, which originally belonged to families in Cologne and later came to Darmstadt with the collection of Baron von Hüpsch. A smaller number of women 's costumes from the late eighteenth century complements this group. The second part of the exhibition is dedicated to a costume of the Elector Moritz of Saxony, datable to the first half of the sixteenth century, from the collection of the Dresden Rüstkammer. All of the costumes were examined and conserved in the conservation workshop of the Abegg-Stiftung over the last few years. The results of this research are published in a richly illustrated catalogue.

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Die The extravagant courtly fashions of the Renaissance and bourgeois styles of the seventeenth century have come down to us largely via the fine arts. The costumes themselves have survived only in very few cases. The Abegg Foundation has been entrusted with the restoration of a collection of these rare garments, which before they are returned to their owners are to be presented to the public in Riggisberg. On display will be a magnificent princely costume from the sixteenth century as well as several upper garments from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

The exhibition will show important historical costumes from the collection of the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt and the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. A total of twenty-seven items of clothing will reveal remarkably skilled tailoring, some delightful decorative details, and experimentation with fashion. The costumes are mounted on custom-made stands to lend them the volume, size and shape typical of the times.

BOURGEOIS COSTUMES
The upper middle classes had just as great a desire to be fashionable as did the nobility. Patricians and wealthy burghers took pleasure in wearing clothes of the same cut as those worn by princes. The main difference was in the materials used. Dress regulations set out precisely which cloth could be worn by which class. The use of metallic thread, for example, was reserved for the nobility. While many portraits from the seventeenth century testify to the elaborate styles of dress worn by the bourgeoisie, original costumes dating from that time are few and far between.

THE BARON VON HÜPSCH COLLECTION
The exhibition features a unique collection of historical costumes belonging to the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt. The collection goes back to the collector Baron von Hüpsch (1730-1805) of Cologne, who was one of the first to take an interest in upper middle-class clothing, and to document it in his encyclopaedic Kunst- und Naturalienkabinett. This collection of curiosities brought together eighteen upper garments dating from the seventeenth century: nine of them women's and nine of them men's, all of which had once been worn by patricians and wealthy burghers of the city of Cologne. His collection of costumes is by far the most important of its kind. In it, we find types of clothing that have not been preserved anywhere else. The collection's remarkable contents make it possible for us to trace the development of bourgeois fashions in the seventeenth century. The exhibition presents whaleboned bodices with floating basques, men's doublets trimmed with lace and cassocks with spreading tabs. Many of them are also elaborately decorated using techniques such as pinking, embroidery or sumptuous ribbon trimming on the cuffs and a superfluity of buttons.

EIGHTEENTH CENTURY COSTUMES
The Hüpsch Costume Collection is complemented by five bodices from the eighteenth century, which also belong to the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt. These show that then also, clothes were handed down and altered to fit new wearers, or were reworked in line with the latest fashions. Two theatre costumes are of particular interest here. These are made of plain materials, and one reveals historicist elements intended to lend it a Renaissance character.

COURTLY FASHIONS OF THE RENAISSANCE
A magnificent state costume comprising several single garments brings to life the extravagance of sixteenth-century courtly fashions, otherwise seen fully only in paintings by Hans Holbein the Younger or Titian, for instance. This costume belonged to Elector Moritz of Saxony (1521-1553) and is now in the collection of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (Rüstkammer). The ensemble includes an eye-catching gown -a kind of short coat- with dense pleats and fashionably puff and hanging sleeves. A yellow silk doublet, an ample trunk-hose, and yellow leather stockings complete this impressive outfit. This is the oldest courtly costume dating from the Renaissance period to have been preserved in its entirety.

PAINSTAKING RESTORATION
All the costumes on display were analysed, preserved, restored and mounted on individual stands at the Abegg Foundation. The results of years of delicate research and restoration work will be outlined in the relevant publications. A beautifully illustrated catalogue of the garments in the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt is to be published in time for the exhibition launch. This work came about as a result of interdisciplinary cooperation between international specialists in the field. After the exhibition, these precious garments will return to the museums they came from.

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