Costumes in medieval drama: A review of the literature

The study of costume in medieval drama is problematic because of the lack of textual information about actual costumes. The visual nature of medieval drama, however, requires an understanding of costumes in order to bring the texts to life. Costumes themselves form a text, legible only to those who can read the complex symbols of material, design, fashion, and style. Costumes shared the iconography of other medieval art and thus carried the potential for reinforcing the established sacred and secular hierarchy. The materials used for costumes reflected the extent of the cloth trade and the technology available. This thesis reviews pertinent literature from various disciplines: medieval drama scholarship, economics, social and political history, technology of fabric making, art and design. A study of these contexts surrounding medieval drama illuminates the visual richness of medieval costume.