Preceden

History of Gloves Timeline

(c. eg. 3000 BCE–Present)

The history of gloves traces how hand coverings evolved from practical protection into symbols of status, fashion, profession, hygiene, and athletic performance. Less

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Go to: Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Modern uses

Gloves combine protection, ceremony, fashion, and concealment

900 - 1905

The listed history shows gloves serving multiple purposes across time: liturgical cleanliness and ceremony, royal burial, aristocratic fashion, specialized craftsmanship, practical civilian dress, and concealment of fingerprints.

Berlin gloves become a trade name

1800 - 1899

Mainly during the 19th century, Berlin gloves became a generic or trade name for washable, thin white cotton gloves.

Berlin gloves are worn by servants

1800 - 1899

Thin white Berlin gloves were often worn by servants, including butlers and waiters, as part of their professional civilian dress.

Berlin gloves spread among less affluent civilians

1800 - 1899

The affordable, washable Berlin glove was also worn by less well-off people in civilian life during the 19th century.

Criminal use of gloves is discussed in The Law Times

1905

In 1905, The Law Times made one of the first references to criminals using gloves to hide fingerprints.

Image source: Fingerprint

Criminal use of gloves is discussed in The Law Times

Gloves become part of a burglar's outfit

1905

The Law Times stated that, in the future, when a burglar went burgling, a pair of gloves would be a necessary part of the outfit because gloves could conceal fingerprints.

Religious and royal use

Liturgical gloves emerge in Western Christianity

900

The liturgical use of gloves is not traced beyond the beginning of the 10th century. Their introduction may have reflected a desire to keep the hands clean for the holy mysteries, although another explanation connects them with the increasing ceremonial pomp of Carolingian bishops.

Carolingian bishops adopt greater ceremonial pomp

900

The development of liturgical gloves has been associated by some historians with the growing ceremonial display surrounding Carolingian bishops.

Liturgical gloves spread from the Frankish kingdom

1000

From the Frankish kingdom, the custom of wearing gloves in liturgical settings spread southward toward Rome.

Rome records liturgical gloves

1050

Liturgical gloves are first recorded in Rome during the earlier half of the 11th century, indicating the custom had entered Roman ecclesiastical practice.

Gloves are documented in medieval English royal burials

1189 - 1774

The burial of Henry II in 1189 and the later opening of Edward I's tomb in 1774 provide two documented examples of gloves associated with medieval English kings in death.

Gloves appear in a royal burial

1189

Matthew of Paris recorded that Henry II of England was buried in 1189 wearing his coronation robes, a golden crown, and gloves on his hands.

Image source: Henry II of England

Gloves appear in a royal burial

Ancrene Wisse condemns worldly gloves for holy women

1200 - 1225

The early 13th-century Ancrene Wisse, written as guidance for anchoresses, treated worldly accoutrements such as fashionable gloves as inappropriate for holy women.

Image source: Ancrene Wisse

Ancrene Wisse condemns worldly gloves for holy women

Edward I's tomb yields gloves

1774

Gloves were found on the hands of King Edward I when his tomb was opened in 1774, further documenting the association between gloves and royal funerary dress.

Image source: Edward I of England

Edward I's tomb yields gloves

King John's tomb yields gloves

1797

When the tomb of King John was opened in 1797, gloves were found on his hands, providing physical evidence of their use in royal burial practices.

Image source: John, King of England

King John's tomb yields gloves

Fashion and craftsmanship

Ladies begin wearing gloves as fashion

1200 - 1299

During the 13th century, gloves began to be worn by ladies as a fashion ornament rather than solely for protection or ceremonial purposes.

A Paris guild of glovers is established

1200 - 1299

A Paris corporation or guild of glovers, known as the gantiers, existed from the 13th century, showing the early organization of glove manufacture and trade.

Bologna restricts samite gloves

1294

A sumptuary law promulgated in Bologna in 1294 targeted samite gloves as part of efforts to restrain luxury and vanity.

Glovers organize in the fourteenth century

1300 - 1399

Glove workers were already organized during the 14th century, continuing the development of specialized craft structures in the industry.

English glovers join the Dubbers or Bookbinders Guild

1440

By 1440, English glovers had become members of the Dubbers or Bookbinders Guild, where they remained before securing a separate institutional identity.

Elizabeth I popularizes elaborate gloves

1500 - 1599

Gloves reached their greatest elaboration in the 16th century. Queen Elizabeth I set a fashion for richly embroidered and jewelled gloves and used them conspicuously in courtly audiences.

Image source: Elizabeth I

Elizabeth I popularizes elaborate gloves

Paris gantiers become gantiers parfumeurs

1500 - 1599

Parisian glovers developed into gantiers parfumeurs, combining glove production with the perfuming of leather using scented oils and animal-derived substances.

Perfumed glove making reaches the court of Catherine de Medici

1500 - 1599

In Paris, scented leather gloves became associated with the court of Catherine de Medici. Their perfume could come from oils, musk, ambergris, and civet.

Image source: Catherine de' Medici

Perfumed glove making reaches the court of Catherine de Medici

Elizabeth I uses gloves in courtly audiences

1558 - 1603

Elizabeth I put gloves on and took them off during audiences to draw attention to her hands, turning glove display into a deliberate element of royal presentation.

English glovers seek their own guild

1558 - 1603

During the reign of Elizabeth I, English glovers formed their own guild instead of continuing as members of the Dubbers or Bookbinders Guild.

Rome restricts perfumed gloves

1560

A Roman sumptuary law of 1560 targeted perfumed gloves, reflecting official concern about luxury accessories and ostentatious consumption.

Image source: Sumptuary law

Rome restricts perfumed gloves

The Ditchley portrait depicts Elizabeth with gloves

1592

The 1592 Ditchley portrait of Elizabeth I features the queen holding leather gloves in her left hand, recording the importance of gloves in her visual representation.

Soft chicken-skin gloves become fashionable

1600 - 1699

In the 17th century, gloves made from soft chicken skin became fashionable, adding a distinctive material to the period's expanding range of luxury gloves.

The Glovers' Company is incorporated

1613

The Glovers' Company was incorporated in 1613, formalizing the separate guild identity that English glovers had developed during Elizabeth I's reign.

The French royal brevet recognizes perfumed glove making

1656

Although perfumed gloves had been introduced at the court of Catherine de Medici, the trade was not specifically recognized until a royal brevet issued in 1656.

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Key Facts

  1. The earliest known gloves date to ancient civilizations, including Egypt, where they served practical and ceremonial purposes.
  2. In ancient Greece and Rome, gloves protected workers' hands, although they were sometimes viewed as signs of weakness by soldiers.
  3. During the Middle Ages, gloves became important symbols of rank, authority, religion, and social status in Europe.
  4. The Renaissance and early modern periods saw major growth in decorative leather gloves, perfumed gloves, and specialized glove-making crafts.
  5. Modern gloves include medical gloves, industrial protective equipment, sports gloves, winter wear, and high-fashion designs made from both natural and synthetic materials.

Source

This History of Gloves timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

We work hard to keep these timelines accurate, but mistakes do get through. If you spot one, email us at [email protected] and we'll fix it for future visitors.

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