Habit of a Gentleman of Wallachia

by Thomas Jefferys

This beautiful copperplate engraving, made by the renowned cartographer and engraver Thomas Jefferys, provides an insight into the social stratification of Wallachia during the mid-18th century (current-day Romania).

In his engraving titled "Habit of a Gentleman of Wallachia," the gentleman depicted belongs to the upper echelon of the Boyars, a class that boasts the unique combination of Levantine refinement and Balkan culture. Wearing a voluminous caftan adorned with fur and a special kind of headpiece called a "kalpak," the gentleman showcases the features of the "Phanariotes," an era marked by the domination of the fashion trends of the Ottoman Sublime Porte of Constantinople over Wallachian attire.