A Brazilian Family
Location: Rio de Janeiro
Description:
This image, a color reproduction of the original drawing by Sir Henry Chamberlain, and its accompanying description form a direct connection between the costume of the Old World and the costume of the New World. The figures all wear unique costumes that were obviously given special attention by the illustrator. We are told that this family is of the middle class on the way to Mass, so their clothing, is probably some of the best that they own. The author first describes the father's clothing in great detail, before proceeding to that of the mother and children:
"The dress of the old gentleman is pretty much the same as it was many years ago. Stockings with shoes and buckles, a powdered wig, a cocked hat with a black cockade, and a gold headed cane, are the indispensables for his Sunday dress ; the other parts of his apparel need not be very new or very clean" nor is it absolutely necessary that the operation of shaving should have been performed.
The Children and their Mother have been modernized by the arrival of the Court from Lisbon and the fashions then introduced; and their dress is very nearly the same as in the Old World. The principal difference to be observed, is, the greater fondness of Brazilian ladies for a variety of colours, without much taste, and in their giving the preference to those of the gaudiest hues."
Again, we are reminded of the class of these individuals, and of the importance of ornamentation and decoration to costume as a whole, in European custom as well as in the native traditions. The man wears no very fine clothes, as a wealthy man would, but has a few accoutrements that indicate that he is doing something special on this day.
Book Title: Views and costumes of the city and neighbourhood of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil : from drawings taken by
Plate Number: Plate 6
Call Number: F2646 .C5 1974