Caricature entitled La Toilette d’un clerc de procureur, 1816: a lawyer's clerk has his wig generously powdered by a servant or barber.
Caricature entitled La Toilette d’un clerc de procureur, 1816: a lawyer's clerk has his wig generously powdered by a servant or barber. Musée Carnavalet, Histoire de Paris

The power and pomp of the wig

During the Baroque and Rococo periods no self-respecting man or woman would consider themselves properly dressed without one finishing touch: their wig. Fashionable first at the French court, their popularity then spread all over Europe. Coiffed hairpieces long served as a symbol of social status for both sexes.

Murielle Schlup

Murielle Schlup

Freelance art historian and cultural scientist

There are records of wigs and similar hairpieces of all styles and compositions being worn in ancient times. Made of human and animal hair, as well as plant fibres and grasses, they were to be found adorning the heads of men and women alike in many different cultures. They were a fashion statement, used for ceremonial purposes, or simply concealed the wearer’s own thinning hair. There is evidence of wigs in ancient Egypt, as well as among the ancient Greeks and Romans. Medieval wigs took the form of leather caps with applied human or animal hair, but they did not grip well, causing frequent embarrassment.

Increasing popularity thanks to syphilis and Louis XIII

From the early 1600s onwards, baldness in men was increasingly seen as a weakness. One reason was rampant syphilis, which was treated with mercury that resulted in major hair loss. More and more, long, luxuriant hair was seen as a sign of health, strength and virility. Louis XIII of France (1601-1643), for example, wore his natural hair much longer than his father had done.
Louis XIII of France in 1622, wearing the à la comète style, in which mid-length hair on the back of the head is tied into a side ponytail. Drawing by Daniel Dumonstier.
Louis XIII of France in 1622, wearing the à la comète style, in which mid-length hair on the back of the head is tied into a side ponytail. Drawing by Daniel Dumonstier. RMN-Grand Palais (Chantilly) / René-Gabriel Ojéda
However, since illness caused him to lose his hair early, even as a young man he wore a shoulder-length black wig for public appearances. Styled simply, it essentially consisted of three broad hairpieces joined together. This type of wig soon came to represent honour, power and elegance among the aristocracy. Suddenly, wearing a wig lost its stigma, instead becoming a status symbol showing the wearer's sophisticated and refined lifestyle. There was a rush of demand at the French court, and the craft of wig-making became increasingly professional.
Louis XIII in 1635, dressed in armour and wearing a wig. Painting by Philippe de Champaigne.
Louis XIII in 1635, dressed in armour and wearing a wig. Painting by Philippe de Champaigne. Museo del Prado

Louis XIV and the periwig

Louis XIV (1638-1715) was an absolute ruler in matters of fashion as well as of state, and gave the wig trend a further considerable boost in the second half of the 17th century. The first Paris guild of barbers and wigmakers was established in 1656. The royal wigmakers revolutionised their craft by creating tresses: knotting tiny bundles of hair together onto narrow woven bands using silk threads. These bands were then sewn onto a light textile cap tailored to the shape of the wearer’s head.
Louis XIV, shown here in a 1661 portrait, made a full head of long curls the male beauty ideal. At this time he was already using hairpieces to supplement his own hair.
Louis XIV, shown here in a 1661 portrait, made a full head of long curls the male beauty ideal. At this time he was already using hairpieces to supplement his own hair. Wikimedia
As a young man, Louis XIV wore his brown hair in long, wavy curls. He was clean-shaven, however, with a new and effeminate look that was further amplified by lace cravats, satin shoes and silk hose. As his own hair began to thin, he initially used hairpieces to give it greater body. From 1673 onwards he resorted to a long, full-bottomed wig of tight curls to the chest or hip, created for him by his personal barber, Benoît Binet, in 1670. As a result the style was initially known as a binette. The highly coiffed periwig had been in existence for some time, but Louis XIV elevated its status to that of state wig, and made it an essential fashion accessory at court. From that point onwards it signified the style credentials and social rank of the wearer, but also symbolised the complex diktats of etiquette at the French court, which then soon spread to all of the royal courts of Europe.
The wedding of Louis of France, Duke of Burgundy, to Marie-Adélaide of Savoy in 1697.
The wedding of Louis of France, Duke of Burgundy, to Marie-Adélaide of Savoy in 1697. To the left of the picture is Louis XIV, and behind him Louis Le Grand Dauphin, grandfather and father respectively of the groom. Apart from the clergy, all of the men wear the centre-parted periwig with the curls styled high on each side. It put an end to the wearing of the tricorn hat. Once a fashion essential, it was now clamped under the left arm. Wikimedia

Pomade, perfume and powder

While Louis XIV had his own wig room at the chateau of Versailles, and always employed the best wigmakers and hairdressers at court, others went to visit the wigmaker in his shop. Wigs were made to order on personalised wig stands, or cheaper models displayed for direct sale. Wigmakers not only created new wigs, but were also responsible for cleaning and re-styling old ones.
The wigmaker's establishment often also served as a barber's and hairdresser's. Engraving from 1762.
The wigmaker's establishment often also served as a barber's and hairdresser's. Engraving from 1762. Wellcome Collection
Wigs could not be washed, so in time they stank horribly. Standards of hygiene at the time were generally appalling, and personal hygiene was no exception. A dry toilette had to suffice. Long-handled scratchers and smelling bottles were always close at hand. Some models even had built-in lice and flea traps in the form of tiny containers or just pieces of cloth containing the bait. Fleas were attracted by the pomade used to set the wigs, as it was made of animal fats that went rancid over time. To counter the smell, wigs were perfumed with essences of amber, lavender, clove, rose petal and cinnamon. What's more, from around 1700 onwards they were frequently powdered white with wheat, corn or bean flour mixed with kaolin and chalk for what was considered a particularly elegant look.
Ingenious scaffolding in a Paris hair salon. The British caricature ‘Fashions in hair’ of 1788 makes fun of the Académie de Coiffure and the extravagant piled-high styles of the French court.
Ingenious scaffolding in a Paris hair salon. The British caricature ‘Fashions in hair’ of 1788 makes fun of the Académie de Coiffure and the extravagant piled-high styles of the French court. Wellcome Collection
Under the wig, any of the wearer's own remaining hair was generally cut short or even shaven. This was for practical, but mainly hygienic reasons, so as not to provide a breeding ground for lice.
The Wig Shop caricature. If they had any of their own hair left, women and men alike often kept their heads shaved under their wigs. Watercolour by Thomas Rowlandson, undated.
The Wig Shop caricature. If they had any of their own hair left, women and men alike often kept their heads shaved under their wigs. Watercolour by Thomas Rowlandson, undated. Boston Public Library
But where did wigmakers get the huge volumes of hair they needed for their trade? In addition to animal (mainly horse) hair, human hair was used. Some of this originated from prison inmates and prisoners of war, but most came from poor women, who sold their long hair to make a little extra money. By the mid-18th century the European hair trade was booming. Hair collectors, many of whom came from Flanders, went from village to village buying hair from peasant girls and women from the low social classes. Blonde or silver-grey hair was in particular demand, followed by black, but naturally curly hair was the most valuable of all. Straight hair was later curled, and from the 18th century onwards also coloured or bleached if necessary.
The countryside hair trade. Der Haarkäufer in Thüringen (The Hair Merchant Comes to Thüringen)
The countryside hair trade. Der Haarkäufer in Thüringen (The Hair Merchant Comes to Thüringen) Wikimedia

Variety of wig styles in the 18th century

As the new century began, the strict rules of fashion began to ease, especially after the death of Louis XIV in 1715. The popularity of the periwig began to wane. In its place came a variety of smaller, lighter and more comfortable wigs that were less expensive and thus affordable to a broader section of society. They were particularly attractive to the professional middle classes in the cities, among government officials, doctors, judges and the clergy. In many places the ruling classes made good use of the new trend by taxing wig-wearing. White-powdered wigs with rows of horizontal curls were particularly widespread in a whole range of models. The Encyclopédie perruquière of 1764 counted 115 different styles, including knotted wigs, bonnet wigs, bag wigs and queue wigs.
King Louis XV (1710-1774) in a white wig as was worn in the mid-18th century. Painting by Maurice-Quentin de la Tour.
King Louis XV (1710-1774) in a white wig as was worn in the mid-18th century. Painting by Maurice-Quentin de la Tour. Wikimedia
Horsehair bag wig, circa 1780.
Horsehair bag wig, circa 1780. Metropolitan Museum of Art

Marie Antoinette and the coiffure à la belle Poule 

Men initially set the wig trends, far ahead of women. However, as the 17th century progressed noble ladies began to dress their hair ever more elaborately, adding hairpieces to their own hair and decorating their styles with bows, lace, flowers, feathers or pearls. Around 1700 the fashion was to pile the hair several layers high at the forehead using frames attached to special caps, this was the coiffure à la fontange. In the 1780s, hair and additional hairpieces were draped over ever-larger cushion-like pads, giving rise to the coiffure de style pouf. The popularity of towering hairstyles culminated in ostentatious constructions of wire, gauze and ribbons. This type of overblown headdress was a frequent target for caricaturists. The most famous example of such tonsorial extravagance was Marie Antoinette (1755-1793), wife of Louis XVI of France (1754-1793). Her most sensational works of hair art earned her huge criticism. One of the milder reproaches came from her own mother, Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, who wrote from Vienna in March 1775: “(…) it concerns your headdress, which they say is 36 inches high from the roots and adorned with numerous feathers and ribbons that hold it all together! (…) A pretty young queen, so full of grace, has no need of such follies. (…) I simply must warn you against these minor excesses (…).” In these few lines is a sense of foreboding about Marie Antoinette’s future, knowing as we do how she lost her head to the guillotine in 1793.
Extravagant hair creations fit with her lavish lifestyle: Marie Antoinette, queen of France, with a pouf hairstyle. Portrait circa 1775.
Extravagant hair creations fit with her lavish lifestyle: Marie Antoinette, queen of France, with a pouf hairstyle. Portrait circa 1775. Wikimedia
The maternal scolding went unheeded, as the most famous excess was yet to come. When the French warship Belle Poule was victorious against the British in 1778, Marie Antoinette attended a ball with a model of the triumphant frigate in her hair, styled high to represent ocean waves. It was imitated endlessly, and this and similar styles reflecting current events or containing elements such as small birdcages went down in costume history under B for Belle Poule. It took many hours to create such sumptuous statements, and women would try to conserve them for several days, even up to two weeks. They presented a logistical challenge where carriage journeys were concerned, for example. And restful sleep lying down was impossible, because unlike full wigs the hairstyles could not simply be taken off at bedtime.
Hair in the style of Marie Antoinette’s coiffure à la belle Poule, decorated with a model of a ship. Bibliothèque nationale de France

Decline of the great age of wigs

By the time the French Revolution was over, wigs had well and truly been left to rot. Lice-infested, dusty and matted, they were associated with the anti-reform aristocracy and times long past. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, courtiers and the upper middle classes had returned to a more natural style of dressing led increasingly by the lighter and simpler patterns coming from England. Hairstyles for both sexes adapted accordingly. Most men once again wore their hair short, possibly with a toupee, and women limited themselves to discreet hairpieces. The aristocracy, meanwhile, maintained the wig only in the full dress liveries of their male servants, to achieve uniformity and render their staff anonymous. Commonwealth judges also retained the wig as a symbol of honour as part of their official dress. After a brief wig revival in women’s fashion in the 1960s, we now tend to see wigs mainly on stage and during the carnival period, the latter of synthetic fibres and made in the Far East rather than the palaces of France.

Published on: 16.02.2023

Modified on: 20.03.2023

URL: https://blog.nationalmuseum.ch/en/2023/02/the-power-and-pomp-of-the-wig/

More of: Modern AgeSocietyWomen in historyFashionBaroque

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