Habit of a Lady of the Lower Palatinat in 1643

by Thomas Jefferys

This impressive copperplate engraving, made famous by the mapmaker Thomas Jefferys in the 18th century, illustrates the elegance of an aristocratic woman from the Lower Palatinate in the mid-17th century.

Whereas 1643 was marked by the endgame of the Thirty Years' War in Central Europe, the "Habit" shown here is evidence of the change that took place within Baroque fashion. The shape becomes less constricted by the Spanish farthingale, but more elegant through the high waist line of the Caroline fashion.