Some documents trace the origin
of the necktie to 221 BC during the reign of China’s first emperor. The
‘terracotta army’ that was buried with the emperor, comprised of 7000 soldier
statues, all wore neckwear. Ties seemed to disappear for many centuries after
that. The servants of Roman soldiers were allowed to wear cloths around their
necks, although it was not considered appealing or stylish at the time. Roman
orators also wore it to warm their vocal cords.
The neck scarf came back into
fashion as part of a military uniform in Croatia in the 1600s and was
co-opted by French royalty. The French termed the neck scarf the ‘cravat’,
thought to be a slight morphing of ‘Croat’. The cravat became fashionable in England in the late
1700s when Beau Brummel, a male fashion consultant, decided to add it to his
wardrobe. In the early 1800s, the name ‘cravat’ was replaced by the word ‘tie’.
Books were published in that time to show variations of how to knot cravats or
ties. As the British spread their colonies around the world, their fashions
also spread, including the necktie or scarf. Armies adopted the necktie as part
of their uniform, with the color and pattern uniquely identifying different
regiments. This is where the patterned necktie developed.
The modern necktie
The modern neck tie was designed
in the 1920s by an American tie maker, Jesse Langsdorf. Artists of the time
also placed artwork on ties, creating the first novelty ties. In the 1930s,
King George V passed on a particular way to tie neckwear to the Duke of
Windsor. Thus, the ‘Windsor Knot’ was named and made famous. From the 1920s,
the width of the necktie has changed many times and has been as thin as 1 ½
inches and as wide as 4 ½ inches. The 1970s was a particularly ‘wide tie’ era. The
1980s placed emphasis on neckwear as being highly important for ones career. Thus,
the ‘Power Tie’ was born. The 1980s ties were much narrower than the decade
before, bringing back the narrow neckties of the Rat Pack era in the 1950s.
The 80s also saw the development
of many novelty ties, especially the fish tie, hobby neckties and other types
of art themed ties. The early 90’s saw the tie trend diminish drastically as
casual days in offices took hold. Even the most formal of offices started to
accept more casual dress, which signaled the end of daily neckwear as a
requirement.
After the new millennium, a
conservative trend took hold and neck ties made a comeback in many places of
work. No longer was a novelty tie acceptable workplace apparel. After 9/11,
patriotism was shown openly and very prominently on neckwear. Since 9/11, the
trend of wearing ties has waxed and waned. Currently it is becoming chic to
wear narrow ties even with jeans...a very nice addition to an otherwise casual
look.
It is nice to know the roots of
the tie, such a seemingly small clothing accessory. It is amazing how neckwear
influences others through history, and how the necktie is the male form of
fashion self-expression. Express yourself by visiting tiecoon.com and choosing the ties that speak to you.
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