Comments on: Q&A: Archaeologist Unearths 600-year-old Bra in Castle

By: Andrew S

Andrew S — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 14:45:36 +0000

Looks like a very well-made article. Though it also looks like we are only seeing part of it, from the fastening at the back it seems as though it would originally have covered most of the ribcage, so kind of halfway between a bra and a corset

By: Vera Ahlgren

Vera Ahlgren — Sun, 09 Sep 2012 16:01:17 +0000

Lace and decoration were commonly used in the garments of both genders in history, so the fact that the bra had lace is in no way evidence that it was meant for “some one else’s eyes”. Big breasts are painful to carry without bras. Is a satirical man the best source to find out why women really wore bras? Are the male comedians of today the best source for future historians to reveal why today’s women act in the way they do?

By: isabelle

isabelle — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 13:51:02 +0000

Fashion was important, even back then? Back when? When we became tool using creatures scratching on walls? Artistry, ornamentation and beauty are not modern constructs and even less sophisticated animals jazz up their existing features for the purpose of attracting the opposite sex. Jeez, just because this epoch has La Perla doesn’t mean highlighting breasts is a.new thing, and style only a recent development.

By: Sandy Butler

Sandy Butler — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 17:34:30 +0000

To me it looks like this was a combination bra/corset,
with the long waisted piece pictured at the side of the item being laced through the grommet holes in the back,
which would also cinch the waist??

By: Emily Spivack

Emily Spivack — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 17:49:48 +0000

Very good point, Barbara. I was basing that assumption on something I’d read in the original BBC History piece.

By: Barbara

Barbara — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 16:17:58 +0000

I’m confused by the assumption that lace means lingerie is intended for someone else’s eyes. Is it outside the realm of possibility that women (in the past or today) would wear nice things because the women themselves enjoy ornamentation? This is a discouraging message, and a good example of current cultural attitudes affecting the interpretation of material culture.

By: Melissa P

Melissa P — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 03:52:20 +0000

“In your opinion, what makes this a particularly worthy discovery?” How about the FRIGGIN’ TIME MACHINE!!! (“Last week, Beatrix Nutz, an archaeologist and researcher at the University of Innsbruck in Austria, shook the foundation, so to speak, in an August 2012 article in BBC History…”