Documental collection of Portuguese sumptuary laws (15th-16th Century)

• Grant number: 24/04318-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: December 01, 2024
• End date: November 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - History - Ancient and Medieval History
• Principal Investigator: Ana Paula Torres Megiani
• Grantee: Thiago Henrique Alvarado
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (FFLCH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 21/02912-3 - A connected history of the Middle Ages: communication and circulation from the Mediterranean Sea, AP.TEM

Abstract

The aim of the project is to compile a documentary collection of sumptuary laws promulgated by Portuguese monarchs between the 15th and 16th centuries. Reflecting the societal hierarchy and a way of life, attire held a central place in estate societies. Throughout the 15th and 16th centuries, demographic and economic growth, along with political and social stability enabling expansion, first to Africa and later to Asia, facilitated the circulation of numerous luxurious goods, such as gold fabrics and silks. This dynamism was accompanied by social mobility and changes in dressing styles. With the goal of ensuring distinctions in attire among individuals, maintaining due reverence for each social status, and preserving the finances of families and the kingdom, monarchs enacted sumptuary laws. Given the significance of these regulations in understanding the circulation of goods, the hierarchical structure of society, and the analysis of the relationship between law and morality, the main purpose of this project is to provide support for studies on dressing habits in Portugal. In an increasingly interconnected world, the examination of clothing and sumptuary laws also contributes to analyzing the impacts of Portugal's openness to other territories, whether through matrimonial alliances or commercial partnerships with Christian or non-Christian kingdoms. In this regard, it is of interest to explore how connections with other nations, especially Castile, and commercial openness, which allowed the importation of precious fabrics like silk, influenced Portugal's dressing habits. These laws, by what they permit or prohibit, help us understand the diplomatic, economic, political, and social impacts of this expansionary period.