Habit of a Young Gentleman of Brabant in 1588

by Thomas Jefferys

The graceful copperplate engraving is a representation of the height of fashion during the Duchy of Brabant in a time of great turbulence socially and politically. The year 1588 may have seen the Spanish Armada, but the young men of the Low Countries had their own sense of style in which Spanish nobility blended with the northern sense of elegance.

The figure is depicted wearing the Spanish-style doublet, together with the ruff collar, both representing high rank and strict rules. What is intriguing about Jefferys’ depiction of this Elizabethan fashion in the mid-18th century is the “antique looking at an antique” aspect that comes to light through his accurate portrayal of the "Young Gentleman."