Neck-zecar.—The linen waist worn beneath the low-cut bodice was, as we have already said (p. 242), supplied with an embroidered hem, which was often of considerable width and decorated with gold threads, beads, etc. (jig. 2). Sometimes it was finished off with a narrow, finely gathered edging (jig. t). When the jacket was worn closed this edging or hem was drawn up about the neck, and, gradually becoming broader (A/. 38, fig. 4), developed into a collar. The jacket and dress were also supplied with a close-fitting collar, which confined the frill about the neck and cheeks (figs. 5, 6). The frill gradually expanded into the large ruff or " wheel collar " (fig. 7) which was in use at the close of the sixteenth century, and which long formed part of the official costume. Remains of it are still seen in the ritual garb of some Protestant divines. It was worn also by women, and was retained by the elder matrons, who natu rally rebelled against later innovations. When the ruff could not pos sibly be made larger, its shape was changed and the most grotesque forms were introduced, like that, for example, shown iu the portrait of Queen Elizabeth of England (fig. 8).
As a further decoration lace was substituted for the troublesolue linen plaitings. The linen was retained, but not plaited, and it constituted the collar proper. At first it stood erect (figs. 9, to), but later on fell over on the shoulders (fig. it). At first it was broad, such as we see it in portraits of Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, but afterward it was diminished in size (figs. 13, 14), and finally was replaced by the neckerchief (figs. 16, IS) introduced from France. When this kerchief in turn became small, the collar reappeared in the form known in Germany as the "parricide."' But the real remains of the ancient collar are the bands worn by the Protestant clergy.
Hair and arrangement of both hair and beard stood in close connection with the style of collar worn. The fashions of the Mid dle Ages in this regard were in direct contrast to the old Germanic usages. The Crusaders who conquered the holy places did not wear beards. Duke Henry the Lion appears smooth-faced on his monument, and the same is true of other heroes of those times, of whose appearance the romantic poetry has given us a far different description. The hair was cut in the so-called " bangs" fashion—that is, fringed short about the forehead— and worn moderately long about the rest of the head. This fashion endured until the middle of the sixteenth century, when the practice of wearing the beard according to the individual fancy was also indulged in. The long hair of Albrecht Diirer (fig. 1) formed an exception to the prevailing fashion.
The emperor Charles V. with his Spanish following first introduced into Germany the custom of wearing the beard long. But men soon began to trim it—about the cheeks first, where the projecting frill hin dered its growth (fig. 7). Then the cheeks were cleanly shaven (fig. 9),
which became the universal style up to the middle of the Thirty Years' War; the beard was also cut short on the upper lip and chin (figs. 13, 16) until about 1700, when it disappeared. To accommodate the frill and the collar the hair of the head was also cut short (figs. 7, 9, lo). The taste of the seventeenth century forbade the use of the shears upon the hair: when it became so abundant as to be troublesome, it was cut off at the shoulders and permitted to grow long only at one side. Dandies even made a plait of it on this side, to which they fastened bows and beads (b/. 37, fig. 3).
The mania for full long hair was so great that false hair was used when Nature's supply was deemed insufficient. This was the origin of the wig, which at first was only au imitation of the natural hair (pi. 38, jig. 16), but presently, about 1690, grew into the mighty allonge wig (AT. 18), which erected a high mountain of curls on either side of the head and descended in a stream of frizzled hair. After the year 170o the wig (fig. 20) became narrower on all sides; a flat space was left along the crown, which continually became broader, and finally to such an extent as to give a flat appearance to the top of the head (ji.c. 21). The wig had now become so small that it could often be constructed out of the natural supply of hair; this was accordingly done wherever there was enough. The style now consisted in the use of one or more curls at each side of the head, the hair of the forehead being brushed back and either gathered into a bag (jig. 22) at the back, according to the French style, or, as was more customary in Germany, made into a braid (fig. 23). Later, the wig fell altogether into disuse, and the fashion of powdering- the hair (figs. 21-23) was introduced.
During the sixteenth century the women wore the hair in braids, at first wound about the head (fig. 2); sometimes they covered it with an embroidered net or one made of gold threads (fig. 6); but toward the end of the century they allowed the braid to hang down. After the introduc tion of the Spanish fashion the women of the nobility sought, though perhaps less in Germany than in other countries, to imitate, or even to surpass, the fashions of the men, and they frequently succeeded in the attempt. The hair (/5/. 36, jigs. To, II) was at first brushed straight back from the face, then turned up in curls (p. 37, fig. I), and decorated according to the individual's rank and wealth with rich ornaments (pi. 38, jig. 8). When the men wore their hair hanging down, the women did the same, and light, natural curls fell (fig. 12) on the shoulders. The curls, however, constantly became more artistic (fig. 17), and finally, with some resemblance to the wig, were gathered on the top (fig 19).