15th century Turkish Women's Clothing

A few scans from one of my many historical costume books. More to come, so keep your eyes peeled!

A useful overview on what we know about late 15th century Ottoman women's clothes.

Introduction to 15th century Ottoman Dress

Here are a great deal of new images from various sources. I have grouped them into artists, starting with Ottoman miniaturists, and then European painters, to give a better understanding of the clothing and styles. Enjoy.

Ottoman Miniaturists



This lady wears a sheer veil over a dark, patterned jacket, which itself sits over a red patterned jacket and another sheer dress. A pair of loose pants are worn underneath the ensemble. Note the very cute little white boots.



Fewer layers this time, an orange jacket over trousers and a sheer skirt.



Similar to the first image. It would seem that the long jacket is an outdoor coat, and the layers beneath can be worn seperately in a state of 'deshabille' when relaxing at home.



Many colours and fabrics on these female musicians. I love the square necklines in these, very flattering!



A beautiful winter ensemble. The fur on the overcoat appears to be sable, and she wears a brown dress over a striped dress over loose red pants. Love it!



Similar to above.



This very fitted dress is cut under the bust, paired with only a (very) sheer chemise on top! Judging by other images I've found, this was a popular look. Also see below image.





These are existing costumes from the late Ottoman period, so somewhat out of our era, but they still have some touches that we have seen in the above illustrations: fur trim, balloon pants, etc. And the level of detail and embroidery...

A few more adorable miniatures.



Pretty much the same as everything we've seen, but I just love the look of those fabrics...



Much the same again. Less transparent material on the skirt and veil this time, and with coloured embroidery.



This is soo cute. I love the pink robe - and I don't even like pink! Notice how the inside hem is edged with red, and her henna-ed toes peep out of gathered purple trousers.

Now onto a few Victorian orientalist paintings:



I love the materials in this dress. Lots of thin, textured layers in the same colour. The edges of the fabric on the outer layer are scalloped.



This fair lady wears very pale make-up (the ideal was to have chalk-white skin and black hair - so Evren and Ezel have done well) but I think the artist has gone a tad too far with this interpretation. The costume looks to be a dress fitted under the bust, with a translucent chemise (barely) covering her chest. Her outer dress is lined with ermine fur. I love the stripy chartreuse silk in this one.



Here's a good idea of those translucent chemises that Victorian artists found so titillating...ha. ha. I like this one because of the pretty embroidery.