The Bayeux Tapestry (1080s)—This 231-foot-long embroidery on linen features a continuous pictorial narrative relating the story of the Norman conquest of England in 1066. It is an important source of information on the clothing and arms of the Norman invaders of the eleventh century.

Jean de Brie, Le Bon Berger (1379)—This treatise written for King Charles V of France, describing the life and activities of a shepherd, provides detailed information on the costume and appurtenances of shepherds.

"Le Dit du mercier" (thirteenth century)—This thirteenth-century French trade poem found in a manuscript in Paris (Bibliothèque Nationale) presents the mercer—a traveling peddler or salesman who carried his stock with him—as a speaker, hawking his merchandise and describing some of his sales practices. The poem provides information on a variety of inexpensive accessories, such as buckles, combs, hats, and cosmetics that...