24 ANTIQUE DOLL COLLECTOR NOVEMBER 2019

Museum News

White embroidered purse, c 1850Stoff, Stickereien und Spitze

Handbags – History of a timeless accessoryEXHIBITION October 19, 2019 – April 5, 2020 Spielzeug Welten Museum Basel

Bags have not always been cult objects for women only. In earlier times, both men and women carried pouches and bags. It was practical to wear bags on

belts or even as pouches slung around the waist under outer garments. During the course of fashion history, the unisex bag gradually transformed into the handbag exclusively for female use. When close-fitting chemise dresses made of gauzy muslin came out, there was no choice other than to carry the pouch in the hand or on the arm. It was not until 1875 that a handbag with a handle was introduced. In the 20th century handbags experienced their great boom. Bags, such as the so-called Kelly bag, became absolute cult objects and icons. Some of the greatest and most influential bag designers, including Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Gucci and Prada, started in the saddler business and originally produced luxury travel luggage. This exhibition, with around 400 items, provides insight into the history of handbags beginning in 1550. The early history of an accessory

The first bags were most likely made from skins tied to a stick to carry food or flint stones. Over time, straps developed for wearing bags around the hips. This had the advantage of leaving the hands free. This form of belt bag was worn by the inhabitants of ancient Rome and those who came after up to the Crusades, both men and women. In the 13th century, bags were equipped with metal racks to enlarge them and give them more stability. This construction was common until the 15th century, and only the belt embellishments and content of a bag could distinguish whether it belonged to a man or a woman. Then, in the 15th century, more delicate bags in the form of the alms bag appeared for the first time. These signified wealth and prosperity. Often they were decorated with pearls and cords and were attached to a chain on the belt. Big, sturdy bags indicated hard work and were mainly used by farmers.

Bag-shaped pockets appeared in the 16th and 17th centuries, but were less commonly used. More widespread were one or two bags hidden under a wide skirt that could be reached through a slit in the garment. These kinds of bags – also sewn to the petticoat – were very common for a long time and can still be found today in traditional costumes. Men wore pockets more and more often, so they no longer needed bags. Thus, women as bag carriers ultimately prevailed against the men.The bag comes to hand

By the end of the 18th century, women’s dresses became more delicate: the Empire style emerged, eliminating the possibility of carrying a bag under one’s clothing. The reticule made its way to the lady’s wrist. This evolution of the cloth bag was finely decorated and equipped with a loop or a handle. In the early years, the reticule was treated ungraciously by the press, but by 1805, when women were wearing a bodice as outerwear, the reticule had become an established accessory without which a woman would not go out on the street. The small pouch was used by ladies of higher society from the late 18th century to hold small objects that they wanted to have with them always, such as a handkerchief, smelling salts, powder or the like. The shape initially remained the same, but soon artistic variations appeared; for example, in the form of a knitted pineapple or artistically embroidered bags. In 1846, the metal frame was invented, this handbag differed significantly from its predecessors, gaining greater practical and fashion importance.

Later, hard-shell bags with carrying handles useful for travel were needed, the first handbags made of leather came to be. They looked more like small suitcases and had a snap closure for the first time. In the middle of the 19th century, wealthy people began to travel more often, thanks to the expansion of railways. For this they

Leopard bag in monogrammed canvas and leather by Azzedine AlaiaLouis Vuitton, 1996

ANTIQUE DOLL COLLECTOR NOVEMBER 2019 25

Museum News

needed luggage. The bags were usually equipped with locks and let the contents of the ladies’ bags become an even greater mystery for men. Towards the end of the century, more emphasis was placed on the ornamentation of bags; for example, with beads or metal links. Brand protection also gradually became an issue. At Louis Vuitton in 1896, the logo was painted by hand on the suitcases to avoid imitations. After all, the travel bags had an excellent reputation that had to be defended.Handbags and the 20th century

The evolution of the handbag in the 20th century reflects the evolution of fashion as a whole. The changes in the role of women in society redefined the function, size and shape of the handbag. It developed from a small pouch with a drawstring, which had no real use besides a decorative purpose, to a hard-shell carrying bag for the independent woman that held keys, make-up and other items of modern lifestyle.

After the First World War, leather was scarce and expensive, so even well-known fashion houses turned to cotton fabrics. At the same time, the proportion of synthetic materials increased sharply in the 1920s. The zipper, adopted from the transport bags of the Canadian army, became socially acceptable in 1923. A fashion

high point was reached with the minimally designed envelope bags (pochettes), which had a cover flap, like their 18th- and 19th-century predecessors. Also fashionable during the 1920s, were the well-known bags whose shape was determined by a frame. There were also exotic-looking dance bags as well as bags of metal links (chain maille) made of mesh pockets, some decorated with fringes below. Handbags made of metal links have been around since the early 18th century. However, they remained extremely rare because of the laborious manual work. Only after the introduction of the first machine for producing metal mesh fabrics in 1908 did they become affordable for the general public.

Men, who had often stashed their wives’ belongings in their jacket and trouser pockets, were released from this task in 1938 at the latest, when Elsa Schiaparelli brought the lantern bag onto the market. It had enough space for cigarettes, make-up, money and keys, and even had electric light. The 1920s shaped handbag fashion by using elaborate straps and unmistakable ornaments in Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles.

Find the museum here:Spielzeug Welten Museum Base Steinenvorstadt 1, CH-4051 BaselTelephone +41 (0)61 225 95 95sina@swm-basel.ch

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