Queensland racegoers sporting cartwheel-shaped sunhats, 1939.

Fashion Hats on Old Days, in Antique Pictures, in Almost Obsolete Habits

The fact that in old days almost all people were hat has always intrigued me. Maybe you have the same thoughts…so, let’s try to figure it out.

“All those poor elves I haven’t set free yet, having to stay over during Christmas because there aren’t enough hats!”
― J.K. Rowling

1 — Hats were used as an indicator of social status.

A man with a horse wears a hat of greater height than the accompanying man. 19th century Chile.

19th-century Chile

2 — Hats were used to greeting people

Carle Vernet’s 1796 painting showing two decadent French “Incredibles” greeting each other.

3 — Hats to hide

This cartoon by Ion Theodorescu-Sion satirized the popularity of mushroom hats. 1908. It first appeared in a Romanian publication.