15th~16th century inspired Beekeeper Costume

Conceived Spring 2022
Last updated Summer 2024
Consisting of Gugel
Basket face-piece
Tunic
Materials Natural-coloured 100% linen fabric ~2.5x1.5m
Straw woven basket ~21cm Ø
Method hand-sewn
Pattern Self-drafted; taken from online sources
Primary Inspiration Pieter Bruegel the Elder: The Beekeepers, circa 1568


The Gugel

Liripipe
Adjust to your liking
Face opening
Measure the height of the basket (which is ideally the height of your head from chin to scalp)
Neck
Measure the circumfence of your head and halve it
Bib
Adjust to your liking
Measure the height of your basket. Use this as the measurement for the face opening of the gugel.

Measure the circumfence of your head. Use the half of this as the measurement for the neck part.

Consider the length of the liripire (add to halved head circumfence) as well as the length & design of the bib. Customizable to your taste.

Transfer the pattern onto the fabric. Add seam allowance! Cut either 2 pieces of the same design or cut 1; with no cut at the top of the pattern (which would be my recommendation).


The Basket

Cylindric Basket
A basket in cylrindrical shape has more advantages than a simple disk/plate shaped one
Material
Choose a woven basket either made of willow or straw
Basket Height
It’s best to use a basket that matches the height of your head
My recommendations
regarding the basket face piece:

Use a wicker basket made of willow rather than straw for better visibility and breathability.

Use a basket that has the same diameter as the length your face (chin to scalp). You should be able to tuck the basket under your chin with relative stability, as it aligns with the crown of your head at the top. In my case this measurement is ~21cm.

Use a basket that is cylindric rather than simply a disk, as this ensures stability.

In the instructions of the gugel, I mention using the diameter of the basket as the measurement for the face opening. This is so that the basket fits into the opening snugly and doesn’t need to be sewn in.


The Tunic

Versatility
For free movement, the sides of the tunic are not sewn shut in this case
Neck
Here it’s simply a slash in the fabric but can be cut out in the style of a boat neck
Sleeves
A sleeve in a simple rectangle shape with a wide shoulder and wrist opening. There are also 'S' sleeves and trapezoid shaped sleeves which are more fitted
This Tunic
is a simple as can be T-shaped tunic
Measure the arm length and shoulder length.

Consider the length of the tunic itself and the size of the arm holes (=width of the sleeves), as well as the general design of the tunic. (See research for inspiration)

Cut out the hole for the head after sewing together all the parts, this makes it more flexible to adjust to your liking.

There are many different and quite simple patterns to follow which can be looked up on the internet.

In my case, there are no godets or gussets in use. In my opinion it is worth looking up how to use them in sewing if you want a specific shape for your tunic.






September 2024 : courtesy of Sahra
These are pictures from my first outing with a reenactment group! I’m wearing the beekeeper costume like a worker’s uniform over my regular (reenactment) clothes. It makes it all look much more harmonious in my opinion.




Summer 2022 : courtesy of my mom




May 2022 : courtesy of my mom
This was my first outing wearing the beekeeper costume! I still really love these photographs. The costume is combined with modern elements as I didn’t have proper undergarments/shoes to go along with it yet.









Here are all depictions of medieval and renaissance beekeepers I could find that wear a uniform with any sort of face covering.

For medieval reenactors that seek to depict an accurate beekeeper, these pose a certain challenge: only the beekeepers in Bruegel’s pen drawing distinctly wear a woven basket as face piece. All the others could be wearing one made of wire, a kind of sieve, or simply fabric draped over their face; which would, if we follow the basic etiquette/rules of reenacting, make the beekeeper with a basket face Renaissance, and not Medieval.
In the sphere of historical reenactment, it is important to back up depicitons with sufficient sources, be it in art or actual findings of surviving garments (which is obviously very difficult in this case), and one has to acknowledge that for the beekeeper, there simply isn’t enough material to make the claim that basket-faced professionals existed before the 1500s. It is reasonably possible, since baskets did exist then, and were most likely cheaper and more widely available than wire mesh, but we can’t say for sure.

This is, of course, mostly important to those who wish to be historically accurate, for example those who are part of a reenactment group that specializes in a specific time frame. For hobbyists, let this simply be an interesting tidbit I thought worth mentioning.

Die Bienenzüchter.
Das Blatt zeigt vermutlich einen Handlungsablauf. Federzeichnung etwa 1568. Pieter Bruegel der Ältere (1526/1530–1569)
GERING ACKERBAU WEN IN REÜSSEN.
Early illustration of a beekeeper.
Showing two bee baskets and a beekeeper.
From the German edition of Sebastian Münster's Cosmography, titled Cosmographey oder beschreibung aller Länder, published 1574 by Heinrich Petri in Basel. First published in 1544.
Georgics. Bodleian Library MS. Rawl. G. 98.
fol. 049v: Italy, Milan: 15th century, middle
Beekeepers, beehives, extraction of honey; in initial, Virgil writing.
Two beekeepers in uniform tend to beehives, smoking them, while two more, dressed in normal clothes, seem to be extracting the honey.
VERGILIUS, Bucolica, Georgica, Aeneis.
France, Lyon, Bibliothèque de la Part-Dieu - P.A. 27, 248 f. 15e s. (ca. 1411) ; 15e s. (milieu) ; 15e s. (fin)
Depicting a beekeeper tanging a swarm of bees.
Neu vollkommen Kräuter-buch : Darinnen über 3000. Kräuter.
Theodorus, Iacobus; Date Original 1613.
According to Forster: Die Biene: appeared in publications in 1588 and in the 15th century.
Also depicting a beekeeper tanging a swarm of bees.


All the photographs on this page are (c) blamensir or the courtesy of affiliated parties. Unauthorized use is forbidden! For inquiries, please contact me at blankmanger(at)gmail(dot)com