Survey of Historic Costume

Learn about Western dress from the ancient world to today. Each chapter shows you the social, cross-cultural, environmental, geographic, and artistic influences on what people wore. More than 600 images help you to recognize recurring themes and concepts and understand the role of dress from a diverse, global perspective. The book covers each decade, from the 1920s to the present, in separate chapters to help you keep track of the changes in modern fashion. Learning Objectives, Key Terms, Discussion Questions and Exercises, and a Glossary help you master concepts.
Your best guide to the last 5,000 years of Western dress.
Phyllis G. Tortora is Professor Emerita at Queens College, The City University of New York.
Sara B. Marcketti is a professor of apparel, merchandising, and design and the director of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching at Iowa State University, USA.

I love this book, it is like an old friend. I have spent years with it. I cannot imagine using another textbook. It reads with ease and has you turning pages like a magazine. - Ronnie Chamberlain, Northern Kentucky University, US

The book is a good, clear survey of Euro-American dress and provides students with a good introduction to sources available to dress history, as well as some of the challenges and debates of historical research. - Charlotte Nicklas, University of Brighton, UK

This textbook provides a comprehensive overview of European/Western costume history and a substantial foundation for an introductory course. - Susan Joudrey, Saint Mary's University, Canada

The textbook is extremely well written. Students comment that they enjoy the visuals included in the book. - Marianne Bickle, University of South Carolina, US

Large, comprehensive, well researched. An easy book to design a course around. Although the book is large with much information, the students tend to like using it. - Janice Kimmons, Lamar University, US