Framing the Face: Collars and Ruffs
Past display archive
19 February 2016 - 16 July 2017
Room 3
Free
Unknown man, formerly known as Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland
by Cornelius Johnson (Cornelius Janssen van Ceulen)
1627
NPG 1344
Clothing in Britain has often seen fantastical extravagance and distortion. This small display of paintings and miniatures explores the collars and ruffs that were such a striking feature of sixteenth and seventeenth-century dress. Their design and scale changed continually over the period, with each decade heralding a new fashion that allowed sitters to demonstrate their wealth and style. From the clean folds of starched linen to the intricate patterns of French and Italian lace, collars and ruffs offered men and women the perfect means with which to frame their faces for the world.
Follow the changing fashions in this slideshow of works from the Gallery’s collection
Sir Nicholas Throckmorton The ruff developed from a small decorative frill on the edge of a collar to become an entirely separate article. Throckmorton wears a neat ruff typical of the 1560s. It is decorated with blackwork embroidery, with matching cuffs. Queen Elizabeth I In the 1570s detachable ruffs began to grow in size. Elizabeth I wears a deep figure of eight ruff edged with lace and matching cuffs. Sir Edward Hoby Popular in military portraits, lace provided a delicate and striking contrast to the sitter’s armour. Hoby wears an embroidered geometric lace falling band with matching cuffs. This portrait is on display at the Gallery’s regional partner Montacute House in Somerset (National Trust). Queen Elizabeth I Ruffs assumed their most exaggerated form in the late 1580s and 1590s, with courtiers following the fashion set by Elizabeth I. Sir Christopher Hatton Standing collars were a popular alternative to ruffs in the sixteenth and early seventeenth century. Hatton wears a collar embroidered with blackwork and edged with lace. Sir Walter Ralegh and his son Walter Ruffs and collars began to diminish in size in the early seventeenth century. Here Sir Walter wears a neat, shallow ruff while his son wears a falling collar edged with lace. Both were equally fashionable. This portrait is on display at the Gallery’s regional partner Montacute House in Somerset (National Trust). The 1st Earl of Monmouth and his family This row of heads framed in white is a dramatic representation of different styles of neckwear. From left: a standing collar; a full ruff; a wide layered ruff pinned at the front; a falling ruff; and a shallow layered ruff. Each example is edged with lace of different types including cutwork and needle lace. This portrait is on display at the Gallery’s regional partner Montacute House in Somerset (National Trust) The Duke of Buckingham and his Family Fashions in collars and ruffs began to change from the late 1620s as the collar superseded the ruff. The Duchess and her daughter both wear deep lace collars worn wide across the shoulder, whereas the Duke wears a lace-edged falling band with matching cuffs. Dorothy, Lady Browne (née Mileham) and Sir Thomas Browne By the 1640s collars and cravats were the most fashionable neckwear. Collars could be either short and plain, such as that worn by Sir Thomas, or wide across the shoulder and edged with lace, such as that worn by his wife.
by an unknown Anglo-Netherlandish artist
oil on panel, circa 1562
NPG 3800
by an unknown continental artist
oil on panel, circa 1575
NPG 2082
by an unknown Anglo-Netherlandish artist
oil on panel, 1583
NPG 1974
by an unknown English artist
oil on panel, circa 1588
NPG 541
by an unknown artist
oil on panel, probably 17th century (after a portrait of 1589)
NPG 2162
by an unknown artist
oil on canvas, 1602
NPG 3914
attributed to Paul van Somer
oil on canvas, circa 1617
NPG 5246
after Gerrit van Honthorst
oil on canvas, (after a portrait of 1628)
NPG 711
attributed to Joan Carlile
oil on panel, circa 1641-1650
NPG 2062
Related portraits
- An unknown woman, possibly Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox (NPG 401)
- Mary, Queen of Scots (NPG 1766)
- Unknown woman, formerly known as Mary, Queen of Scots (NPG 96)
- Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (NPG 6761)
- Sir John Harington (NPG 3121)
- King James I of England and VI of Scotland (NPG 1188)
- Mary Herbert, Countess of Pembroke (NPG 5994)
- Unknown woman, possibly Lady Arabella Stuart (NPG 1723)
- Mary, Queen of Scots (NPG 307)
- Unknown man, formerly known as Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland (NPG 1344)
- Edward Cecil, Viscount Wimbledon (NPG 4514)