The Birth of Body Stockings

During Roman times people were accustomed to wearing tunics.  As these garments were course and also loose it was necessary for people to adapt by wearing trousers underneath.  These trousers often had the socks sewn onto them and thus came the birth of body stockings or pantyhose.  As time went on the stockings became fashionable and were worn to show off the legs of men while also protecting them.  Upper class men would have silk and sating stockings while common men wore stockings of more corse material.  Later stockings were worn by men and women as they rode horses.  As pants became more available stockings made the transition from a male to a female garment.   The following images give a visual timeline of this evolution.

This painting by Hans Holbein the Younger was painted sometime around the 1550's.  King Henry VIII is wearing an early version of pantyhose, worn to show off his legs.

In this photo entitled Domestic Conflict by Guercino in 1630 the man is also wearing a style of stockings very fashionable during that time. 

This American painting done in 1812 titled is The Capture of Major Andre shows a man of prestige wearing white tights to show his status and is leading his captor off to justice.

Stocking began to become a popular item for women and were made of silk.  This advertisement from the 1930's shows a pair of women's stockings. The line in the back is visible because stockings were sewn together during this time period.

This last photo is from L'eggs and shows the modern version of pantyhose.  There are no seams in the back and the fabric is reinforced as you reach the top of the pantyhose.

Historical Styles

This garment would have been worn in Western Europe around the 1500's.  They are medieval garments and called tailored peasant dresses.  

These are examples of medieval garments worn around the 1400's in Middle and Western Europe.  They are dresses and would have been worn by the higher classes of people.

This is an example of a classical style of clothing worn by people in the 1700-1800's.  This style of dress was worn mostly by middle class citizens in Western Europe.

This photo is also a representation of classical clothing and would have been worn by Western Europeans in the mid 1800's.

This is a medieval revival example made modern in the 2000's.

This is an African folklore style clothing made in the mid 2000's.

This is an example of an ethnic costume from India style made modern.

This is an example of an ethnic costume from China.

This dress was made modern by a designer in the 1950's and is a representation of classical revival here in the United States.

This is a dress worn by a dutchess in the 1940's in Europe.  It is a representation of medieval garments.