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When
did women begin wearing bras?
Originally,
women wore a sort of chemise under their corset, which was fitted to
just below the breasts, and offered some support. In the 1920's women
tried to flatten their chests by wrapping them in muslin. So when did
they begin wearing bras as bras? Well, you can actually find 'brassiere'-type
clothing back in ancient Egypt. And the Romans had the 'mamillaire'
(from the Latin, 'mammosa' and 'mammeata' meaning well-endowed -- looking
at the etymology, apparently there was some need for these mamillaires).
The use was basically the same: support. It was no more than a cloth
carefully wrapped around the chest to ensure less movement while either
doing the chores for the master. So the idea is not really new.
When
did panties come into fashion?
The 16th century
seems to be the point where French nobles found that they could make
their fancy clothes last longer by wearing undergarments - so one might
state that 'modern underwear' appeared at about this time. (I somehow
doubt that this as a decent starting point though.) One could argue
that even during the Dark Ages a lower layer of clothing was used as
a means of ensuring increased warmth and reduction in chafing. (For
example, think of the humble knight who had to wear those uncomfortable
cold metallic suits of Armour -- a lower layer of cloth was invaluable.)
It would only be a small step for nobles in the same time period extending
that to non-combat use. The only thing that seems to be consistent in
all the theories about these lower layers and their appearance is that
they probably appeared as people migrated into the colder climates.
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