Ties - A Brief History
For whatever mysterious reason, the wearing of fabric around one's neck has long been associated with a man's status. The first neckties on record date back to ancient times - to China's Chin dynasty (circa 221 BC), where some of the thousands of terra-cotta warriors surrounding the grave of the dynasty's founder, emperor Shi Huang-Ti (aka Qin Shi Huant Ti), are depicted wearing a piece of cloth around their necks! In early Western civilization, art from the Roman Empire also shows men attired in neckwear reminiscent of the modern-day necktie.
Neckwear fashions went through many permutations over the next several centuries, including such notable developments as the starched "ruff" (sometimes called the Elizabethan Ruff) of mid 1500's - 1600's. Initially a discreet little ruffle of fabric atop a shirt or chemise, the ruff eventually grew in it's heyday to be an impressive piece of neckwear a foot or more in width! Ruffs were worn by both men and women.
Fast forward to the 1630s - the time of France's King Louis XIII - when the "cravat", considered the direct ancestor of the tie as its worn today, first came into fashion. Believed to be inspired by the attire of Croatian mercenaries, the cravat was type of scarf knotted at the neck. This new fashion immediately took on many variations - from different types of fabrics (simple muslin for commoners to fine lace for gentlemen) to different styles of wear (long and flowing, loosely knotted with the ends tucked into a buttonhole or tied in a bow).
By the early 1800's, the cravat became known as a "tie" and was tied in a number of different ways, according to the preference of the wearer. The "four-in-hand" knot appeared around 1860. The tie further evolved during the late Victorian era, looking much as they do today except that the patterns were typically white or colored stripes on a dark background, usually representing a school (hence the "old school tie"), a club or organization, or a military unit.
Ties became more varied in pattern and color by the 1920's. In 1924, a tie maker named Jessie Langsdorf patented a design for neckties in which the cloth was cut on a bias and divided in to three parts which were then sewn together. Langsdorf's design also included a "slip stitch", across the center back of the tie to hold the sides together. This helped the tie regain it's proper shape after being worn. Fine ties are still made in this manner today.
Tie fashions since the 1920's have revolved around width, length pattern and color. Prior to WWII, ties were much shorter than they are today due to the higher waisted men's trousers and popularity of three piece suits. Tie widths have gone back and forth through the decades, from wild "Bold Look" postwar ties, to the subdued, skinny ties of the mid 1960's, back again to big, bold ties (some of which measured in at a record width of as much as 5") by the mid 1970's, only to have narrow ties come in vogue again in the 1980's ... and back to wide in the 90's! At present, a moderate 3"-3 3/4" width is in style.
Lesson to be learned: Never throw out your old ties - you never know when they'll come back on fashion!
Four in hand tie knot - image by Keith S. Brown