In some parts of Europe 'Creole' fashions became engrained in local dress. In the early 1800s, the young working-class women of Bordeaux - known as grisettes - were renowned for their Madras handkerchief headwraps, which eventually became a form of folk dress in the region. As Bordeaux was a leading centre of Euro-Caribbean trade and the second largest slaving port in France, it is likely that the Madras headwraps worn by Bordelaise grisettes were originally appropriated from African Caribbean fashion.

Related Database Records

  • Entry no. <956>:
  • Entry no, <957>:
Illustration no. 18: Grisette. from Recueil des divers costumes des habitants de Bordeaux et des environs (Bordeaux: Lavigne) Gustave de Galard Bibliothèque municipale de Bordeaux Fonds Arts [394] A 383 Rés.
‘Mouchoir de tete’ (Madras headwrap) Aquitaine, 20th century Collection Musée d’Aquitaine, Bordeaux, 67.56.43 Photographed by Lysiane Gauthier