Breeches

Object/Artifact

-

Saco Museum

Name/Title

Breeches

Entry/Object ID

2014.31.1

Description

Leather breeches with a fall front, leather tie at rear waist, now missing. Fall front closes with brass buttons and there are two brass buttons in the back for suspenders. The pockets and knee openings close with leather covered buttons; there are also leather ties at both knees. Both legs are made of a single piece of leather, sewn up the side seams, folded on the inner side, then sewn together in the front and back above the crotch. All the seams appear to be hand sewn.

Made/Created

Date made

1800 - 1830

Dimensions

Length

34 in

Dimension Notes

36 in waist circumference,18-1/2 in inseam

Material

Leather, brass

Interpretative Labels

Label Type

Cultural/Historical Context

Label

Since leather can stretch and conform to the body, breeches made of this material were practical, durable, and good for activities involving a lot of physical movement. For that reason, tradesmen, such as coopers, often wore leather breeches when working. By the turn of the 19th century, fashionable men began to adopt as their own some of the clothing styles of working people. Leather breeches provide an excellent example of this fashion trend, since in the early 1800s, wealthy men began to wear leather breeches as stylish items of clothing, while working people continued to wear them because they were functional. These breeches were probably worn for riding, and not a great deal of that, given their condition.