JoshuaRed

What would you use for hinges? You could probably find some original hardware somewhere online, I'd wager. At least for reference. And do you think GAOP seamen had the artistic creativity of later seamen, in terms of decorating chests?

Yeah that would be like carrying the cupholder tray from your car with you around the mall!

Hawkyns, where the #%$@ did you find this on DVD??? ALL of us would be VERY interested to know! :)

Bully Boy I believe is a late 18th/ early 19th century term, but I could be wrong. I think Bully was equivalant to "Boss" or "Swell" or "Cool". You and me both, John! I LOVE This guy...makes me laugh everytime. I'd buy a t-shirt with him on it. He's just so enthusiastic about his booze, despite having a stubby hook arm. You gotta love him.

We do need a time machine, Petee. Big time. In lieu of that, someone finally unearthing that old engraving lost for 3 centuries of a pirate crew carousing in Nassau with earrings, headscarves and sashes is the holy grail.

I WHOLEHEARTEDLY third this motion!! Best pirate flick ever...even if it IS about buried treasure. Heston - GREAT Reed- GREAT Posthelwaite - GREAT (as George Merry) Christopher Lee - GREAT BALE - GREAT (even as a kid, Bale has some serious acting chops and more than holds his own with these great character actors) Chieftains Score - GREAT Man now I'm jonesin' for a VCR so I can watch this! I only have the VHS copy too. This REALLY needs to be on DVD. I ditched my vcr once I got a dvd player and tivo....but I wish I had it back for this.

This is my point. If mere calico was worthy of a moniker, than certainly a flamboyant sash or double hoop earrings would be too. Welcome, Capt. Jim. :) Good to have ya here. fwiw, I've spent over 10 years researching ALL aspects of daily life in the colonial era during and beyond the GAOP , not just piracy, with a focus on New England and the West Indies. I've read everything I can get my hands on and then some. I spoken with writers, historians, curators and reenactors. I've taken the first steps toward doing an accurate reenactment myself. And in allllll that time, not once have I found one single solitary recorded instance of a GAOP pirate wearing the stereotypical trappings given to us in the 19th-20th century. If you can find it, I will worship you. Good luck!

Let's not forget ye poxiest of all ye sea villians....Hooke-Handed Harold

GOF posted this as part of a different topic here: This got me thinking. If Calico Jack was known far and wide for something as basic as calico clothing then wouldn't a pirate who sported a gold hoop earring, floor-length sash, bucket-top boots and an eyepatch be equally reknowned for that if not more so? I'm not saying these items didn't exist on their own, but that if they were ever worn with the regularity of Jack's calico, it would have garnered a good deal of notoriety. So there's a reason this stuff is never mentioned in Johnson, Dampier, or anywhere else. Their absence speaks volumes. Just another nail in the coffin for piratical fashion myths...

Yeah I'd like to get myself some checked linen too.

HA! LOL! I think you may just have culled the ultimate grain of truth from this whole topic.

Ahhh I do love a good ol' GAOP Clothing debate! I'd just add "Less IS More"

No it's not....no one has leather blackjacks hanging from their belts along with 3 pounds of swag and bangles. I see no 4' rapiers....no black leather bodices....no thigh-high bucket boots...CLEARLY This is not a Ren Faire! :)

Good god that hat looks heavy! Instruments, small animals...what else is up there? Probably where he keeps his fiddle.

I think they came free inside every bag o' Kellog's Hard Tack!

Florida is good! And hurricane season is almost over. Lots of good Cuban cigars down here too. Greg, that incident actually occurred during Blackbeard's fight with Maynard. Very telling incident!

Yarrrr...I couldn't....it were under glass, aye. I'll try and get some closer detail shots of it next weekend.

Apologies if this has been posted before mates.... I was at MGM Studios here in Orlando over the weekend and at the Backlot Tour they have a special exhibition up right now featuring Hollywood villians. Guess who's costume is prominently displayed? Click the thumbs and enjoy.

I was referring more to the thought of decorating a cartridge pouch with scottish sayings or motifs...or celtic...or french...or african...what have you. Using initials, a date, etc. Maybe stitching a little Abanaki beadwork into it....Or perhaps wearing a certain charm or "piece of flair" (to quote Office Space) appropriate to your home country. Pirates were certainly aware of their unique status in the world, and I know some of them would have taken great delight in expressing personal style & freedom to fully rebel against social conformity, as well as to distance themselves from the R.N. Slop Chest.

Hey buddy - I think you're spot on. That's just what the period engravings depict - belts about 1.5-2" in width.

Yeah no doubt. I KNOW I read somewhere about a Scottish pirate who wore his higland gear. Several pirates were known to carry Scottish mortuary swords instead of cutlasses. And I'm certain that MANY a pirate would decorate his personal possessions with materials, techniques and styles familar to him. It's just a shame so much belonging to the ordinary seaman is lost forever.

Looks to me like many of the common short jackets have simply a slit at the cuff, with a button on one corner of the slit and a hole on the other. This would allow the sleeve to merely hang open if roominess was desired, or it could be rolled back and buttoned so as not to catch on stuff, or buttoned snug around the wrist area....is that about right, or am I way off? This is of particular importance to me for a painting I'm working on.

Long John was VERY cool in TP. Although he was a direct imitation of Wallace Beery's Long John...but you know what they say about imitation. :)

Yeah Kidd is a cool flick, I loved Charles Laughton as a not-so-stereotypical Hollywood pirate.

The Pirates with Parrots thing is by and large based on truth. From the first time European seamen began visiting the tropical climes, they were fascinated with the colorful wildlife and MANY MANY seamen made a nice little side profit by bringing a few cages of monkeys and parrots back home to sell or to woo ladies with as gifts. Often they kept them as pets too. It was very popular and well documented. Even Dampier himself writes about how fond the men on his voyages were of bringing home parrots, teaching them to talk, etc. One of the few "pirate myths" that's entirely true.