Book of Master Craftsmen´s Exams of the Tailors´ Guild of Most

Exhibit of the Month 6 / 2019

BOOK OF TAILORING PATTERNS

BOOK OF MASTER CRAFTSMEN'S EXAMS OF THE TAILORS' GUILD OF MOST

The book written in German about the master craftsman exams of the tailors' guild of Most, containing records from 1568-1828, includes among other things patterns with descriptions, a list of products with information on the amount of fabric needed from 1677, and a chronological list of masters from 1568-1828. The text is written by one scribe, apart from a few later minor annotations.

The unnumbered pages are sewn and bound into parchment covers.

This is a valuable source for understanding the history of clothing in Bohemia during the 16th to 18th centuries and the activities of the tailors' guild of Most. It also serves as evidence of contemporary clothing in the place where the manuscript was created, namely in the royal town of Most.

The creation of tailoring pattern books can be dated to the turn of the 15th and 16th centuries, when the tailoring craft began to flourish. Typical tailoring books from the 16th and 17th centuries are related to the guilds' efforts to bring order to the diverse tailoring works, stabilize their patterns, and standardize material consumption. These books were mostly commissioned at the expense of the guild.

The tailors' guild was one of the most prominent and significant in Most. In the dean's church, it had its chapel dedicated to St. Anne, the patroness of the guild. Guild articles and regulations since the late 15th and early 16th centuries established the individual master pieces that an apprentice had to present to pass the master exam. In Most, this included the creation of 24 pieces of contemporary clothing, for example for burghers, clergy, wedding dresses for brides, military tents, horse coverings, etc.