Quick way to improve your Sailor impression

[Gentleman of Fortune]

Wear a neckerchief....

Now, I know Mr Foxe loves to be the counterweight, but it is really hard to find pictures of GAoP sailors, on ship or off, that are not wearing something around their neck.

It doesn't have to be a fancy silk affair either! A simple linen job, a square yard, will work.

GoF

[Patrick Hand]

It doesn't have to be a fancy silk affair either!

Hey.... other than me red socks... my black silk scarf is my only finery........

I've seen a few references to silk scarfs.... I figure it's period enough......

[Matty Bottles]

The functional benefit of a neck scarf is pretty good, too. You can put ice in it and roll it up on those hot days.

[Rats]

I've had the same neck rag since 92'. Looks that old too!

It would drive me nuts if I lost it!!!

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

WOW... I never thought of this until now, but I stilll have my U.S.N. issue black neck scarf packed away somewhere. Thanx GoF! I have used others in the past even before I started down the Pyrate path, but this is going to get used from now on!

Bo

[CrazyCholeBlack]

as someone who wears a neckerchief in all their period clothes I can heartily agree that they are most useful.

Silk is best in the hottest temps. Linen good for most year round use (try getting it wet and wearing it that way if you get warm). Light weight wool or my newest find wool/silk blend (not pc but loverly!) is fantastic for keeping comfy when the temps start to dip.

And don't feel relegated to just black or white either. The neckerchief is the fastest, cheapest way to add a shot of color to your wardrobe (says the lady with green hands from dying herself a new earlier today)

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

I would like to expand on this subject a bit. for those of us subject to heat exhaustion, they make these newr coolie things that are designed to go around the neck. I'm sure most of you know what I'm talking about. I believe it would be a small matter to wrap one of these inside a PC piece of cloth to use when things get really hot. I've been down to heat before and "clinically dead" for over three minutes, so this is a real concern for me. Anyone else have a thought on this?

Bo

[Fox]

I don't think I've ever been known to speak out against neck-cloths for the GAoP.

One of the interesting things about neck-cloths (if you'll all indulge my waffle here for a moment) is that they seem to have come in to fashion in about 1620. It's weird, I can't explain it, and I'm not sure I believe it myself, but there really does seem to be a clear cut line at about that date. Prior to 1620 there are almost no written or visual references to neck-cloths (take note you Elizabethan sea dogs), but after 1620, as Greg says, it's almost impossible to find a picture of a sailor without one.

Perhaps we should have an "oldest neck cloth" competition. I have an orange one which I can definitely date to the summer of 1990 when I swapped it for my black scout neckerchief with a German cub scout at an international camp as Karlstadt, Germany.

[oderlesseye]

Aye Fox... post me one of 'em pics mate thet has auh Neckercheifed salior.

I could use the reference ifen ye has it.

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

I got mine out and was really suprised to find it is NOT NYLON! It is a silk/linen 40/60 weave issued to me in 1983. But I havent worn it since 1987, so it wouldn't be a fair entry.

Bo

[Patrick Hand]

Kinda funny....

I was looking at the cover of A General History....of Pirates with a Howard Pyle painting on the cover.... I thought the picture was called "And who shall be Captain".... but I could be wrong about that....

anyway.....

http://www.answers.com/topic/howard-pyle

shows the picture....

And LOOK.... almost all of them are wearing a neckerchief.....

Dang.... he got some stuff right.... it might be a fun thread to pick a Howard Pyle painting, and compaire what he got wrong with what he got right.....

[Rats]

damn... Though mine is still my original bandanna from my 1st wild west reenactment in 92... 1990 has got me beat!!!

[callenish gunner]

I have often heard much about what Howard Pyle did to stereotype the pyrate image with bucket boots etc. but if you actually examine his work he has many details correct ...He shows very few examples of any pirate wearing bucket boots most are in buckle shoes or barefooted and the clothing is stylized at worst but not the guideleines for the 1930's hollywood designer sorts of "fashion" blunders attributed to him. .....just my humble opinion

[oderlesseye]

Thanx Patrick.

[capnwilliam]

I have often heard much about what Howard Pyle did to stereotype the pyrate image with bucket boots etc. but if you actually examine his work he has many details correct ...He shows very few examples of any pirate wearing bucket boots most are in buckle shoes or barefooted and the clothing is stylized at worst but not the guideleines for the 1930's hollywood designer sorts of "fashion" blunders attributed to him. .....just my humble opinion

But Callenish, that surely isn't what the real Capt. William Kidd looked like!

Capt. William

[Fox]

Your wish is occasionally my command:

[Capt. Sterling]

Dang, have a cravat that goes back to 1982... but no neck-cloths....

[BILLY BONES]

I think I have you all beat. I have a period correct neck cloth made in France from original 18th century patterns that I bought in 1978. If someone has one older, it would almost be original! Unfortunately, I am considerably older than most of you too.

[Sjöröveren]

I have a scrap of a batik shirt that I got in Malaysia in January of 1976, which I tried wearing once, but it's too fragile anymore to do anything but lie flat in a drawer. So I guess that doesn't count then, does it!?

Damn me eyes, I thought I had it!

[Hawkyns]

is that they seem to have come in to fashion in about 1620. It's weird, I can't explain it, and I'm not sure I believe it myself, but there really does seem to be a clear cut line at about that date. Prior to 1620 there are almost no written or visual references to neck-cloths (take note you Elizabethan sea dogs),.

What's your defi nition of almost none, Ed? Is there any visual evidence at all?

Not to open a can of worms, and not to disbeleive you, but some of Angus MacBride's artwork shows Armada period sailors in neckcloths and head rags. I know he took most of his inspiration from period renditions, but was this a case where he did not? Secondary source at best, so not reliable, but was his work based on a primary source?

Hawkyns

[Fox]

I struggle to think of any visual evidence for them in the Tudor period, but I'm not ready to say there's none.

I gotta say, on the whole the artwork MacBride did for that whole series (Sea dogs, Buccaneers, Pirates) of Ospreys is well below his par for reliability, just look at the illustrations in the Pirates 1660-1730 book. Bucket boots, jolly roger tattoos, earrings, and all the usual nonsense on every page.

There's quite a good discussion of Osprey artwork (contributed to by Osprey artist David Rickman) over on the PB forum, and the news isn't good.

[Hawkyns]

Interesting. Yeah, I'd seen that and wondered about it. And it is strange, because all of his other stuff was pretty much spot on, his

ECW art in particular.

I understand there is a new book out about him, showing lots of his artwork. Haven't seen it yet though.

Hawkyns

[Rumba Rue]

I would like to expand on this subject a bit.  for those of us subject to heat exhaustion, they make these newr coolie things that are designed to go around the neck.  I'm sure most of you know what I'm talking about.  I believe it would be a small matter to wrap one of these inside a PC piece of cloth to use when things get really hot.  I've been down to heat before and "clinically dead" for over three minutes, so this is a real concern for me.  Anyone else have a thought on this?

Bo

I have one of those cool things with pirate motif on it. It's great on hot days, I just throw it in a cooler with ice water and a few minutes later it's either wrapped around my head or neck. They are great! (I actually have another one that a cousin gave me, but it's not piratey so I don't

use it at events)

BTW- I bought mine through the No Quarter Given booth at an event.

[Fox]

Interesting. Yeah, I'd seen that and wondered about it. And it is strange, because all of his other stuff was pretty much spot on, his

ECW art in particular.

I suspect that in that particular case the truth is that ECW clothing had already been thoroughly researched a million times over by the time MacBride came to paint, but with the maritime series he was working more or less blind as very little decent research had been done on sea-farers clothing of the times.

But we're getting off topic here...