Hats Worn Through the Ages Trivia Quiz

Answer: Pith helmet

Pith helmets have been around since approximately 1850 and were initially worn only by military personnel based in hotter areas of the world. Manufactured from the product of cork trees or the pith from Indian swamp plants, these helmets were cool, lightweight and ideal for keeping the face shaded from the rays of the sun. Their original design was based on the old German helmet known as the Pickelhaube. Love that word. Military personnel based in hot tropical and desert climates seized on its advantages immediately, added a few ventilation holes, a chin strap to hold the helmet in place, and even on occasion, a piece of mosquito netting to keep those buzzing pests at bay. The beauty and practicality of the pith helmet allowed it to be also thoroughly soaked in water, without losing its shape, before being worn on the head for extra coolness.

The pith helmet was worn during battle conditions until the beginning of the 1900s, but, from that time, was worn for full dress uniform and ceremonial purposes only. The reason behind its abandonment under battle conditions was that it didn't offer much protection in modern warfare. Examples of military pith helmet wear today can be seen on members of military marching bands, or the United Kingdom's Queen's Guards, the Royal Gibraltar Regiment. So popular and practical was the image of the pith helmet in its early days that male civilians in hot tropical climates also began to wear a modified version of same, as did, on occasion, the less fashion conscious, but sensible, ladies themselves.

Answer: Panama

The panama was first manufactured in Ecuador way back in the 17th century, but, peculiarly so, is not named for the country of its birth, but after the nearby land of Panama instead. This is because after they were made in Ecuador, these hats were transported to the Isthmus of Panama, the point from which they were exported to various selling houses in Europe. Accordingly they became known as Panama hats.

The price of the Panama varies according to the width of its weave. The very finely woven, and most expensive, ones have more than 2000 weaves per square inch. How amazing is that? Known as the superfino, these washable hats can hold water if need be, never lose their colour, and can be folded without subsequent creasing, so much so that is said they can pass through a wedding ring. How peculiar to want to do that in the first place. The main benefit for its folding, though, is for storage and shipping purposes. We don't see gents wearing panamas much in Australia, but on the rare occasion this occurs, they look positively dashing.

Answer: Bicorne

The original bicorne is also known as a horned, twihorn, cocked, or two-cornered hat. It was usually worn by military personnel or government officials in Europe and the Americas from the late 1790s until the beginning of the Second World War. Basically it was just a broad brimmed hat with the front and back pinned up. It seemed to be more for dress purposes than anything else, as its original style certainly didn't protect the face in any way from the forces of the weather. Eventually however the bicorne began to be worn with the sides pinned up instead, which was just a tad more sensible. The advantage of the newer style allowed rain water to drip down onto the back and front of the wearer, rather than down his neck and onto his face.

Today various officers in full dress uniform in the different military services, or leading public figures, can occasionally still be seen wearing the more modern style bicorne at official functions. Paintings of the French leader Napoleon Bonaparte often depict him in the old-fashioned style of the bicorne, with its back and front pinned up.

Answer: Cloche

The cloche was a tight, snugly fitting women's hat that was usually worn pulled down at the front to just above the wearer's eyebrows. It acted as a pretty frame for the face and perfectly suited the short and modern hairstyle for women of the time. Introduced into the world of fashion for the 1920s flapper, the cloche remained in popularity for some ten years. The word "cloche" is from the French language. Its English translation is "bell" and that more or less sums up the shape of this dainty hat. The cloche could be worn plain and unadorned or tizzied up a little with perhaps a small flower, or a piece of jewellery or a small bunch of feathers. Not too much however, as the purpose of the hat was to draw the attention to the face, rather than what was above it.

This rather appealing hat has resurfaced from time to time in the world of fashion, with the most recent reappearance occurring at the beginning of the 21st century. For the true effect of the cloche, however, this can be often seen by actresses portraying the modern "bright young thing" of the 1920s and 1930s in many early black and white movies shown on late night television.

Answer: Deerstalker

A deerstalker is a type of hat that was made fashionable by the upper class country gentleman, for the purpose, not at all surprisingly, of hunting and stalking innocent deer. Worn now by any couldn't-care-less-about-fashion fellow with a cold head, it can be made of any material, has a brim both front and back (for people who don't know if they're coming or going), and comes attached with a warm earflap on either side that can be let down in chilly weather.

The irony about the long term association that developed between this cap and Sherlock Holmes, who appeared in the series of books written Arthur Conan Doyle, was that Holmes was never actually described as wearing one. It was suggested in two of the stories, but never stated outright. That, however, was enough for the vivid imagination of illustrators and movie makers, for many years after their publication, to plonk one of these peculiar looking caps on the superior sleuth's head.

Answer: Bonnet

Bonnets were worn for hundreds of years, mostly by females, but sometimes also by men, from the Middle Ages onwards. They came in a huge variety of shapes and styles, just a few of which can be seen in the accompanying picture for this question. They usually, but not always, came without a brim, and their general purpose, for women, was to either keep the hair from one's face while working, or to keep the hair in place on a windy day, or as a decorative enhancement for a charming outfit. The following is a description of an average bonnet from a fashionable French milliner's establishment of 1817:

"Bonnet of vermillion-coloured satin, embossed with straw, ornamented slightly with straw-coloured ribbands, and surmounted by a bouquet formed of a full blown damask rose and buds, with ears of ripe corn. This ornament is partially placed on one side: the edge of the bonnet finished by blond lace laid on strait."

One style of a more elaborate bonnet than most may give you a smile. Fashionable during the Victorian era, this was designed with a large brim and large side pieces on either side of the face, so that its wearer could look neither left or right without turning her entire body. This was known as a poke bonnet, with a comical statement from the times stating that it was called such because a gentleman had to poke his head underneath it to steal a kiss or two from the blushing cheeks of its inhabitant.

Answer: Hennin

The hennin was in the shape of a cone from which a veil of some kind fell down around the shoulders or across the face. It came into use in the early 1430s and was normally only worn by ladies of the upper classes. The cone, which could be worn divided in two, was anything from twelve to thirty-six inches high.

The hair was then pulled back and tucked under the cone. At this time in history and for some time afterwards, the sign of beauty in a woman was a large forehead, so eyebrows were usually plucked out of existence.

This made the forehead even more prominent. It's fascinating, isn't it, how different parts of the body have come in and out of fashion as being considered beautiful? I'm longing for a haughty nose to be the thing of the moment. I'll be utterly adorable then.

Answer: Capirote

This frightening looking headwear, associated with penitence, has been worn in Spain for very many years. It is part of the uniform of various brotherhoods and orders of priests. Seen most often during the Catholic Church's Easter processions, it was once also very common in this deeply religious country for anybody doing penance for their sins to walk through the streets of their towns adorned as such. Prior to this, criminals were made to wear these hats, and then parade through the streets to enable people to spit upon them and hurl rotten vegetables at them. How horrible.

Note: These are not the same outfits as worn by members of the extreme US right wing movement, the Ku Klux Klan.

Answer: Fascinators

A fascinator is hardly a hat at all. It's more of a scrap of material with a few feathers and fluff sew onto it, and plonked at a flattering angle on the side of a woman's head in order to enhance her outfit and her looks. As far as utilitarian purposes go, fascinators are perfectly useless, but oh, they're so pretty.

These scraps of nothingness are usually worn by the ladies when attending posh functions such as weddings and fancy luncheons, or top of the range race meetings, where, I am sorrow to say, their knowledge of the art of the fashionable adornment probably beats their knowledge of horses past the post by a good several lengths.

Answer: Stovepipe hat

Top hats and their different versions are also known as beaver hats, high hats, silk hats, cylinder hats, chimney pot hats or stove pipe hats. The tricorne hat, which followed the bicorne hat, began to be replaced in turn by the top hat as a fashion statement for up to date European gentleman from the late 18th century. At first it jostled for equal position with the tricorne, but eventually, it took pride of place as the must have form of headwear. So popular was this hat that even workmen wore them on a daily basis. By 2014, well into the 21st century, and in England in particular, top hats can still be seen plonked on the heads of gentlemen at society events such as weddings and annual race meetings, or on the head of the lads who attend such notable schools as Harrow.

The stovepipe hat earned its name from the fact that it was taller and with much straighter sides than your every day top hat. On the other hand, the tall hat with the slightly convex sides was known as a chimney pot. The great American President, Abraham Lincoln, was often pictured in his dignified stovepipe, and you may be interested to learn that top hats (the shorter version) were last seen on the heads of dignitaries at the 1961 inauguration of President John F. Kennedy. The collapsible top hat was invented was back in 1812 to save room in cloakrooms where gentlemen left their hats and cloaks if, for example, they were dining at fancy restaurants. This followed complaints by cloakroom attendants that the non-collapsible hats, before this invention, were taking up too much room. And to think people complained about women's trappings. They at least retained their headwear as they sipped the soup.