Buttons: history of occurrence, types, application. Gold button. Clothing items

Going every day to work, study or walk, we do not attach special importance to buttons on clothes. They have become so familiar and ordinary accessories that sometimes they just do not notice and zastegivaeshsya by inertia. But the button's history is very interesting and rich. We will get to know more closely with this kind of clasp.

Button semantics

In Russian, this word refers to "scarecrow", "pugachom", "scare". This is due to the fact that the Slavs were credited with a protective and intimidating function. Also, according to the dictionary of Dahl, in Russian dialects the name "pugalka" was kept for a long time. So called a special bell accessory, which was attached to the collar or hung on a chain. From the ancient Sanskrit "pug" - it's "whip", and "Vic" - "birch", "rod", "whip". And it turned out that the button was called a buttonhole, a whip or pugoprut. That is, there was also a deterrent function.

From English, "button" ( button ) means "bud" - an unopened flower. This suggests that in Western Europe, small parts of clothing performed a non-binding, and aesthetic, decorative function. According to the Romanesque interpretation, there were consonant words with emphasis on the first syllable: "loaf", "botton" and "botao". They meant "piercing", "piercing", "squeezing".

"Button" in Arabic is the homonym of the rose and sounds like "zarra". But with the ancient Persian translation, this word means "gold." It can be assumed that in ancient times the buttons in those places symbolized the sun, and therefore cast them exclusively from precious metals.

Varieties

Thanks to the fact that the button has a very rich history, this garment element is presented in all kinds of colors and shapes today. The most common are flat round variants. But you can also meet convex, spherical, oval, cylindrical, triangular, square, in the form of animals and other buttons. Each form imparts a peculiar style, so fashion designers and needlewomen carefully choose the buttons to combine with the fabric and style of the clothes.

The elements with two or four through holes are in great demand, rarely with three. For example, such mother-of-pearl buttons became a distinction of men's shirts of the brand "Van Laak". Clasps with one hole through (similar to flat beads) or have an eyelet, for which and strengthened thread. A variation for jeans is not sewn, but installed on clothing. This button has a hard stud-stud and a floating hat. There is also a Canadian. It has holes and two elongated slots, through which it is fixed with a tape.

In addition, tight, the buttons vary in size. Large and thick fasteners are sewn on dense fabrics and outerwear. And thin and small mother-of-pearl buttons are ideal for light materials.

Clasp Functions

This element of clothing has changed throughout history. And as a result, it turned out that the buttons differ in purpose. What functions can they perform?

1. Utilitarian. That is, this is the initial role of the fastener, fastening the details of clothing.

2. Information. By the button you can define a position or status.

3. The magical. From the buttons did all kinds of talismans and amulets.

4. Decorative. Sometimes fasteners are sewn as an ornament.

Let us consider in more detail what the history of the appearance of the button and what changes it has undergone with time.

Ancient clasps

Initially, primitive people did not use buttons, but tied the ends of clothes with a knot or passed one piece into the hole of the other. Later, they already guessed using belts, lacing and pins from bones, sticks, pebbles, thorns of plants and other improvised materials. In ancient Egypt, the way of fastening with buckles was already popular. The most ancient finds date back to 2800 BC.

Later (somewhere in 2000 BC) people began to make metal and clay shapeless balls with holes. But some specimens were so neat and precise that they could be attached with a thread. Also found buttons from seashells, which, rather, were used as decorations. What is noteworthy, buckles made of shellfish mollusks, are popular to this day.

As noted by archaeologists, stone finds, which date back to 1500 BC, can be classified as functional. That is, people used them for fastening, and not as ornaments like shells. Another available material is a tree. But the elements of clothing from it did not find. One can only assume that wooden buttons were also common. But due to their properties they simply rotted and did not survive to our time.

Buttons like amulets

Today, few people remember that the elements of clothing were important magic charms, which frightened off hostile forces. Among them are pebbles, beads, embroideries, bells and pseudo-fasteners, which were attached to a chain or collar. For example, in Novgorod was found a shirt with a large red button. She did not fasten anything and did not exactly serve as a decoration. The red color of the Slavs frightened off the evil spirit and was popular. Because it can be argued that the button in this case was a guardian. The Chinese for magical reasons include all kinds of knots-fasteners, of which the most famous is the "fist of a monkey."

Also in the hollow metal or wooden buttons were placed a pellet, a round pebble or a piece of tin, which, during movement, emitted a muffled sound, like a bug. They were put on chains like chains or sewn to clothes. Even as mascots used flat rounds with four holes. Here, the method of sewing such a button was of great importance. For example, to attract wealth, stitches must be made in the form of the letter Z, in order to preserve good health and beauty - in the form of a cross.

Innovative ideas

In the 16th century, Venetian craftsmen started making buttons using the latest technology. The point was that the hot glass form was quickly dipped in icy water and taken out. Due to the temperature drop, numerous cracks formed on the product. They were again filled with glass, and as a result of the refraction of light, the button was poured with bright colors, like a precious stone. It was a real revolution!

After a century Florentine craftsmen came up with a mosaic design for the button. History has not yet seen such a breakthrough in the design of fasteners. Masters on a silver or gold frame laid out tiny pieces of glass or stone in a chaotic order, but it turned out very nicely. Later, a multicolored foil was put under the glass top of the fastener. And already in the 18th century, enamel buttons with miniatures copied from works by Watteau and Bushe artists were in fashion. Since that time, the art of decorating a small detail of clothing has reached its peak.

Button as business card

In pre-Petrine Russia, it was possible to learn a lot about the man by the fasteners. The number of buttons, their shape, the patterns or signs depicted on them spoke about position, status, proximity to power or merit. For each kind of clothing the number of buttons was strictly defined. For example, 8, 11, 13-16 fasteners were sewn on the fur coat, and on the caftan - 3, 8, 10-13, 19. Most of the buttons should have been on tehilya, a quilted armor with a short sleeve in which the warriors walked. Also, the material of the product mattered. For example, the garb of Ivan the Terrible was supposed to have a gold button. And on one caftan it was represented in the number of 48 pieces, and on the other 68 such fasteners were shining.

Military ranks could also be distinguished by buttons. The officers they were silver or gold, and soldiers - bronze, copper, tin or brass. The guards and generals on the fasteners had heraldic drawings, that is, with an eagle. And the regiments, led by representatives of the imperial family, wore buttons with a picture of the crown. In the future, the landmark role continued to develop. The button could tell which profession a person belongs to: a serviceman, a government official, a scientist, and so on. Some of the emblems are used in our time. This is a gold button with an anchor on the sea uniforms and with oak branches at the forest rangers.

Clasps in men's and women's suits

It is noteworthy that the buttons for a long time were the privilege of men. And on their garments, this little detail was found only from the front side to the right. The fact is that men dressed themselves and buttoned in front was more convenient.

The women were helped to dress up as maidens. There were dresses that had a corset, and even a skirt with buttons. You can imagine that the dressing procedure could take a long time. That maidens all this time did not spin before the eyes of the hostess, all the fasteners on the dresses were placed behind. And they were sewn on the left side. This was due to the fact that it was more convenient for the servants to fasten, which means that the hostess could be dressed faster.

Later, the girls began to dress themselves, but, surprisingly, the differences in the location of the buckles have survived to this day. Note that the buttons on the men's shirts are on the right, and on the women's shirts are on the left.

Pugs as decorations

Later, buckles in women's clothes began to perform not only a utilitarian function, but also a decorative one. That's when the "button boom" happened. The girls tried to decorate their entire dress with small round-shaped ones. And since then all the furniture was metal, the poor women of fashion had to rub it to shine for hours. So there were clasps, covered with fabric.

Then the buttons were big and expensive. They were made of silver, gold, porcelain and decorated with precious stones. Such a dowry was inherited and changed from one dress to another. And it is not surprising, because the clothes could cost four thousand, and the buttons - eight.

Modern buttons

In the 19th century they stopped manually making accessories, the entire process was mechanized. Therefore, the pouches fell in price and became available to ordinary people. And in the 20th century, plastic spread throughout the world. From its various types, it was possible to produce anything and create any shape. Also among the girls, a jeans skirt with buttons was popular. With her, then came to fashion special riveting clasps.

Today buttons are often found as fasteners and as decor on shirts, coats, hats, bathing suits and other clothes. Moreover, they began to be used as a material for creativity. They are decorated with ballet shoes, vases, belts, all kinds of crafts, of which create floral compositions and even paintings.

Interesting Facts

• The most costume-rich suit was that of the French King Francis. To him was sewn more than 13.5 thousand pieces.

• The obligatory attribute of the cuff of a man's shirt was a small button. It was sewn, so that the soldiers would not feel comfortable wiping themselves off their sleeves.

• The most unreliable were the buttons on the uniforms of the Napoleonic army. They were made of aluminum and just crumbled in a severe frost.

• In all his life, Louis XIV spent more than six million dollars on fasteners. He loved them so much.

• In England there was a long tradition of collecting the most beautiful buttons on the line or thread. When there are 999 of them, the girl will find her second half.

In conclusion

Unfortunately, the history of the person who invented the buttons did not preserve the story. Although he, as the inventor of the wheel, definitely deserves a monument. Times change, and fasteners as connectors of clothing turn out to be on the second plan. They are already replaced with more convenient options: lightning and Velcro. Although in some cases this is not justified. After all, buttons are easier to replace if they come off or just want to update the clothes.