Beaver hat

The beaver (also beaver, castor from the Latin "Beaver " ) is a fabricated from beaver felt hat hair. The end of the 18th to mid-19th century for men and women hat worn was a forerunner of the cylinder.

Origins and distribution

The use of the Haarfilzes sheared beaver pelts for headgear in Europe dates back to the 16th century. This fashion was reinforced in the 17th century by importing the skins by Dutch settlers from North America. Around 1780 the first English landed gentry wore the made ​​from the soft undercoat of the beaver fur black felt hat with a high, cylindrical head. This had a more or less broad brim of his hat. Under English assortment, beaver pelts used for hats Parchment Beaver were called, the other Coatbeaver. The sloping long guard hairs were used as a material for stockings, gloves and hats, skins for Beutler work or for screen production.

The beaver hair matted very good and the Kastorhüten they say exceptional durability after. They should have been " so durable that if they were removed, sent back to La Rochelle, where they were processed for sale to Spain. But from there they returned to La Rochelle, to be trimmed this time for Brazil. Finally, to be landed as barter of the Portuguese on the African Negro coast the same fedoras! "

Even in the dress codes of the 17th century is the talk of Kastorhüten. They were considered so precious that one. Entire Castor hats, ie those which only consisted of Biberhaarfilz, banned to wear even the first Stand In the Gdansk order of 1642 states that " make citizens Kauffleuten so act in Grosso and the like notables " were " precious Castor hats " forbidden. Szczecin's dress code in 1634, decreed: " be Gantze Castor Hats [ ... ] done away gäntzlich in all ranks. " For half a beaver was only half of the felt from beaver hair, accordingly, there was also Viertelkastorhüte. The city of Braunschweig was in 1630 half of the first level Kastorhüte to: " From decorative and clothing of those who belong to the first level: Ebenermassen they should not need any hats of gantzen Castor, but when they want, only half Castor hats to wear them allowed be with Tight drey Reichsthaler. " the other stands they have been expressly prohibited under penalty.

Later, also known as beaver hat or high hat headgear was also the attitude of the French Revolution and characters found in all western countries spread. Women's hats were adorned with additional ornamentation, such as springs. From 1830 displaced silk hats the beaver and there was the much lower cylinder.

Beaver hats hair in the fur trade museum, United States

In economic Encyclopedia of Krünitz of 1783 says of beaver hats:

The beaver in the literature

As a typical garment of his time the beaver has been immortalized in numerous literary works. So Bettina von Arnim writes in Clemens Brentano's Spring Wreath:

In the story The Indian Cottage by Jacques -Henri Bernardin de Saint -Pierre, we read:

Adolph Freiherr Knigge formulated in the history of Peter Clausen's the sentence:

Theodor Fontane wrote in Stine:

In Dostoyevsky's novel The Possessed Stavrogin appears to duel with gaganov:

A building in Frankfurt am Main

By merging the houses " Ullner " and " Selzer " at Romans mountain in Frankfurt the English beaver built in the 18th century called House No. 32 A Baroque building was demolished at breakthrough Braubachstrasse 1904/1906.

References, Literature

• Erika Thiel: History of the costume. Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-89487-260-8
• Ingrid Loschek: Reclams fashion and costume lexicon. Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-15-010577-3
• Gisela Krause, Gertrud Lenning, Gertraud Rakewitz: Small Kostümkunde. Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-7949-0701-9