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Quiz about The Wrong Trousers Clothing Through the Ages
Quiz about The Wrong Trousers Clothing Through the Ages

The Wrong Trousers: Clothing Through the Ages Quiz


Clothing provides more than protection from the weather. Given that the human form has changed little over the millenia, it is not surprising that trousers (or pants in the USA) have been around since prehistoric times.

A multiple-choice quiz by windrush. Estimated time: 4 mins.
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Author
windrush
Time
4 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
395,119
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
537
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 80 (6/10), Guest 31 (10/10), Guest 198 (4/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. We tend to think of early clothing consisting of a short dress of skins or furs. In fact, clothing was adapted to the conditions. What "not quite trousers" was Otzi, the Iceman of the Alps, found to have worn 5,300 years ago? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Trousers were first recorded in rock carvings and artworks dating from at least the 6th century BC. Which civilisation(s) thought they looked laughable, calling them "sacks" and "barbaric"? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. During the expansion of the Roman Empire, the military started to wear trousers. There were two main versions of these - what were they called? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Peter the Great issued a decree in 1701, ordering that upper-class men were to wear lower clothing and underwear of what Teutonic type and style? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Trousers dating back to 300CE have been found in Thorsberg Moor in Northern Germany. What was the unusual (and practical) thing about the design of these items? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. An important item of male clothing in the 15th and 16th centuries, what was worn with hose, first to conceal, then to exaggerate the apparent size of a male's, um, appendage? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. During the mid 17th century, men's fashions changed significantly, with various types of breeches being worn. What loose flowing style, not gathered in at the knee, became popular in Western Europe at this time? Hint: The ladies may have been amused. Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. In the late 1790s one man's sense of style shot him to fame as the dictator of fashion for the elite, particularly in London society. He pioneered full-length trousers as part of a gentleman's dress. What was this fashion icon's name? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. European women were occasionally seen wearing trousers in the 19th century. In what great city was it illegal for ladies to wear trousers in public without a permit until the law was repealed in 2013? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. In the latter half of the 19th century, Levi Strauss introduced denim jeans to the miners of Gold-rush California. The English had a similar hard-wearing Indian made cloth (also usually blue) for work clothing. What name was given to this cloth and to the trousers made from it? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. We tend to think of early clothing consisting of a short dress of skins or furs. In fact, clothing was adapted to the conditions. What "not quite trousers" was Otzi, the Iceman of the Alps, found to have worn 5,300 years ago?

Answer: A leather loincloth and goat leather leggings

Examination of Otzi, whose preserved body was found in the Alps on the Austrian- Italian border, revealed he had been wearing warm clothes and shoes. His lower body was clad in a sheepskin leather loincloth and full-length leggings made from domesticated goat leather.
2. Trousers were first recorded in rock carvings and artworks dating from at least the 6th century BC. Which civilisation(s) thought they looked laughable, calling them "sacks" and "barbaric"?

Answer: The ancient Greeks and early Romans

The trousered nomadic horsemen (and women) from Eurasia were first recorded on the artworks found in ancient Persepolis. Also it is known that various peoples living in what is now Iran also wore trousers.

Ancient Greeks ridiculed the clothing, and called them "sacks" in their common slang, while patricians of Republican Rome (i.e. before the Roman Empire)thought them a mark of an uncivilised people. There is a beautiful Attic vase dated at 470 BC in the British Museum, which shows an Amazon clad in black trousers which look exactly like modern women's clothing.

All the wrong alternatives are recorded as wearing trousers. Can you imagine riding for hours without them?
3. During the expansion of the Roman Empire, the military started to wear trousers. There were two main versions of these - what were they called?

Answer: Femoralia and Braccae

Short kilts and tunics were practical enough in Mediterranean climes, but as the Empire expanded North through Gaul and into Britain, it soon became necessary to adopt warmer clothing. The Femoralia (or Feminalia as it was also called) was a snug-fitting, knee or calf-length item, while the Braccae was a baggy trouser, closed at the ankles, not unlike modern track pants. Both items were adapted from Celtic clothing.
4. Peter the Great issued a decree in 1701, ordering that upper-class men were to wear lower clothing and underwear of what Teutonic type and style?

Answer: German

In the 17th century, Russia was considered a bit of a backwater of civilisation, so in 1701, as part of his campaign to bring Russia into European society, Peter the Great decreed that the male members of the gentry should conform to his guidelines:

"... The upper dress shall be of French or Saxon cut, and the lower dress and underwear - waistcoat, trousers, boots shoes and hats - shall be of the German type".

Women were also commanded to wear only Western dress - all members of the upper-classes had to abandon their traditional Russian dress, and Peter even put a tax on beards!
5. Trousers dating back to 300CE have been found in Thorsberg Moor in Northern Germany. What was the unusual (and practical) thing about the design of these items?

Answer: Socks attached to the trousers

Two pairs of woollen trousers were found in the bog, along with cloaks and other clothing items; they are thought to be votive offerings (gifts to the gods).

One pair had diamond patterned socks stitched into them. This pair also had belt loops stitched into the waistband. They were close-fitting about the legs and feet, but with a very roomy area around the buttocks. The measurements indicated they were made for a well-built, quite tall man.
6. An important item of male clothing in the 15th and 16th centuries, what was worn with hose, first to conceal, then to exaggerate the apparent size of a male's, um, appendage?

Answer: Codpiece

In 14th century Europe, men wore hose, which were separate high stockings worn over linen short pants or drawers. Towards the end of the century, as fashions changed and tunics gave way to much shorter upper garments, modesty demanded more than a thin piece of linen between the hose tops. So the codpiece was born, at first to conceal, then shaped to emphasise the wearer's attributes. During the ensuing century, they became more elaborate and outlandish, until falling out of favour in the 1590s.
7. During the mid 17th century, men's fashions changed significantly, with various types of breeches being worn. What loose flowing style, not gathered in at the knee, became popular in Western Europe at this time? Hint: The ladies may have been amused.

Answer: Petticoat breeches

Prior to the end of the Thirty Years' War, civilian fashions tended to imitate the military style; peace brought a new freedom of style, which included ribbons and lace. The petticoat breeches were baggy, loose, and trimmed with a lot of ribbon, both at the waist and around the hem.

These were fashionable for only about 10 years before the rhinegraves, a more fitted style which were often worn with an overskirt, took over.
8. In the late 1790s one man's sense of style shot him to fame as the dictator of fashion for the elite, particularly in London society. He pioneered full-length trousers as part of a gentleman's dress. What was this fashion icon's name?

Answer: George "Beau" Brummell

George Brummell was from the middle class, but attended Eton and Oxford, where he made his mark with his wit, strong personality and sense of style. Wherever he went, society men slavishly followed his fashion lead in fashion.

For some years he was a favourite of the Prince of Wales (the Prince Regent, later to become George IV), and under his patronage Brummell set new fashions; slim fitting full length trousers, white cravat, dark claw-hammer coat and immaculate shirt.

Sadly Brummell fell out of favour with royalty, and escaped his gambling debts by absconding to France. He died in poverty and insane with syphilis in 1840.
9. European women were occasionally seen wearing trousers in the 19th century. In what great city was it illegal for ladies to wear trousers in public without a permit until the law was repealed in 2013?

Answer: Paris, France

Some western women (even society ladies) were happy to push the boundaries of acceptability, adopting trousers for riding, bathing, and other activities, despite it being considered unfeminine, and even indecent, by the somewhat prudish majority.

In Paris, however, it was necessary for a lady to obtain a police permit in order to legally appear in public wearing trousers. While it is unlikely that this law was invoked after the 1930s, it was not repealed until 2013.
10. In the latter half of the 19th century, Levi Strauss introduced denim jeans to the miners of Gold-rush California. The English had a similar hard-wearing Indian made cloth (also usually blue) for work clothing. What name was given to this cloth and to the trousers made from it?

Answer: Dungarees

The word 'dungaree' has been used in the English language since the 17th century, describing a coarse woven cotton cloth from India which had indigo-dyed warp threads, and white weft threads. The word appears to have come from the Indian port city Dongri.

The word 'dungarees' soon became interchangeable (in England at least) with the American jeans; which incidentally were named after the Genoese sailors who wore denim trousers. Denim was a material from Nimes in France, originally called 'serge de Nimes'.

Oddly, in England nowadays, a bib and brace sleeveless overall is often termed "dungarees".
Source: Author windrush

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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