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The corset has been an important article of clothing for several centuries, evolving as fashion trends have changed. Women, as well as some men, have used it to change the appearance of their bodies. The corset first became popular in sixteenth-century Europe, reaching the zenith of its popularity in the Victorian era. The earliest image of a possible corset was made ca. 2000 BC. The image is of a Cretan woman, and the article of clothing depicted might be perceived as a corset; however, it is worn as an outer-garment.〔Elizabeth Ewings, Dress and Undress: A history of Women's Underwear (New York: Drama Book Specialists, 1978), 19.〕 While the corset has typically been worn as an undergarment, it has occasionally been used as an outer-garment; corsets as outer-garments can be seen in the national dress of many European countries.〔Ewings, Dress, 22〕 The term "corset" is attested from 1300, coming from the French "corset" which meant "a kind of laced bodice." The term "stays" was frequently used in English from c. 1600 until the early twentieth century. ==16th and 17th centuries== The corset as an undergarment had its origin in Italy, and was introduced by Catherine de Medici into France in the 1500s, where the women of the French court embraced it. This type of corset was a tight, elongated bodice that was worn underneath the clothing.〔 The women of the French court saw this corset as "indispensable to the beauty of the female figure."〔Gleason's Pictorial Drawing Room Companion (1851-1854), 12/1854, Volume 7, Issue 26, p. 412〕 Corsets of this time were often worn with a farthingale that held out the skirts in a stiff cone. The corsets turned the upper torso into a matching but inverted cone shape. These corsets had shoulder straps and ended in flaps at the waist. They flattened the bust, and in so doing, pushed the breasts up. The emphasis of the stays was less on the smallness of the waist than on the contrast between the rigid flatness of the bodice front and the curving tops of the breasts peeking over the top of the corset. These corsets were typically made out of layered fabric, stiffened with glue, and were tightly laced. While a few surviving corsets exist that are structured with steel or iron, these are generally considered to have been either orthopedic or novelty constructions and were not worn as part of mainstream fashion.〔Tortora, Phyllis G., and Keith Eubank. A Survey of Historic Costume. 5th ed. New York: Fairchild Publications, 1989. Print. p. 215〕 By the middle of the sixteenth century, corsets were a commonly worn garment among European and British women. The garments gradually began to incorporate the use of a "busk," a long, flat piece of whalebone or wood sewn into a casing on the corset in order to maintain its stiff shape. The front of the corset was typically covered by a "stomacher," a stiff, V-shaped structure that was worn on the abdomen for decorative purposes.〔 File:Henry III, of France and the princess Louise of Lorraine.gif|Henry III of France and the Louise of Lorraine In the Elizabethan era, whalebone (baleen) was frequently used in corsets so bodices could maintain their stiff appearance. A busk, typically made of wood, horn, ivory, metal, or whalebone, was added to stiffen the front of the bodice. It was then carved and shaped into a thin knife shape and inserted into the Elizabethan bodice, then fastened and held into place by laces, so that the busk could be easily removed and replaced.〔Ewings, Dress, 29〕 The busk was often used for special occasions and events, and was sometimes presented to a suitor as a prize when he was interested in a female (Ewing, 1978, 29). Since the mid-Victorian period, the busk has been made of steel and consists of two parts, one for each side. One side has studs and the other eyes so that the corset can be easily fastened and unfastened from the front.〔Ewings, Fashion , 27〕 During the late 1500s, when whalebone was used at the sides and back of the corset, the corset was laced up at the front. Eventually, the lacing came to be done at the back of the corset.〔 Even as it gained popularity, the corset was not worn by everyone. Mary, Queen of Scots, for example, did not wear a corset.〔Gleason's Pictorial Drawing - Room Companion (1851-1854), 12/1854, Volume 7, Issue 26, p. 412〕 During the reign of Louis XV of France and again during the French Revolution, the corset went out of style, as the fashions were simpler.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「History of corsets」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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