Corsets and Other Unmentionables: Evidence of Women in the Archaeological Record

In this paper, women's clothing, in particular underwear and corsets, are examined in order to determine a woman's role in society through the archaeological record. These particular garments were not only subject to ever-changing fashion trends, but also played a role in identifying a woman's socio-economic standing in society. According to Maples, the identification of artifacts is only as good as the knowledge of the person doing the identification. By increaseing our knowledge in the "littler artifacts" found associated with women's dress, we can increase our understanding of 19th century women's families and the role of dress in defining a pretense of wealth.