Sunday, February 22, 2015

Ribbon à l’inoculation

Here is a picture of the style which encouraged the French to inoculate against smallpox. To quote:
A 1785 fashion plate depicting an ensemble with a hat trimmed in ‘ribbon à l’inoculation,’ a reference to the smallpox vaccinations which became popular after Louis XV died from smallpox in 1774. Note the spots on the ribbon, which likely reference the pustules experienced by sufferers of the disease.

Read more about vaccination’s influence on 18th century fashion (and vice versa) in Kimberly Chrisman-Cambpell’s article, How Fashion Helped Defeat 18th-Century Anti-Vaxxers
Share

No comments: