THE NOBLEMAN'S PARADISE 191men's houses, 'sztukwarkowy' furniture imported from Danzig, oil paintings of
the ancestors, mosaics, plaster ceilings, objets d'art, musical instruments, and
materials of superior craftsmanship of every sort — silver, marble, rosewood,
velvet, and cloth-of-gold — emphasized the owners' ambitions. In the palaces of
magnates, libraries, private chapels, theatres, and even in the case of the
Branickis at Bialystok a complete opera-house, proclaimed the master's cultural
excellence.
Styles of dress observed similar priorities. It was important that the nobleman
and noblewoman should display their quality. For the man, weapons were car-
ried well into the eighteenth century - a sabre when outside, a dagger at his belt
indoors. The thigh-length leather boots, so admired by Henry Valois, struck a
pose of manliness and chivalry. The ankle-length house-smock, or zupan, the
sleeveless waistcoat or delia, and the huge, flared over-coat or kontusz, kept the
trousers hidden from view. The close-fitting cap in Poland, and the tall, fur
kolpak in Lithuania, provided the normal headgear. For the woman, floor-
length robes were in fashion across the centuries. All authorities agree that the
use of sable fur was a traditional Polish fashion for both sexes. Sable was used
for trimmings, for linings, and in the form of soroki or bundles of 'forty skins'
for winter coats. It was widely remarked, also, that gold and jewels were pub-
licly worn in uncommon quantities, as fastenings, pins, brooches, links, clusters,
and as every form of decoration. Poverty-stricken noblemen would rather starve
than part with their heirlooms. In common with the nobility elsewhere in
Europe, outward splendour contrasted with contempt for underwear. In 1620,
the Queen of England, who made a close inspection of the Polish ambassador's
infant son, was surprised to find that under the suit of cloth-of-gold he was
devoid of linen.
Male hair-styles tended to be exotic. In distinction to Muscovite habits, full-
grown beards were rarely cultivated. In the sixteenth century, the clean-shaven,
close-cropped, 'Joan of Arc' look was in fashion: in the seventeenth century, 'the
Tartar look' which was attained by shaving all the head save one long tuft of
hair in the middle. Zygmunt III favoured the Spanish style of close trimmed
beard and moustache. Sobieski sported the handlebar whiskers copied by many
of his subjects. In the eighteenth century, extravagant powdered wigs on the
German model never penetrated far beyond court circles. Pigtails and curls,
gradually gave way to Roman styles 'a la Titus', or 'a la Caracalla'. Fashions
were largely dictated by the fact that soldiering, private or public, remained one
of the szlachta's principal occupations.
Religious observances were strictly kept. In the age of faith, religion was seen
as the guardian of the social order and by extension of the ideals and privileges
of the nobility. It was the most natural thing in the world for the nobleman to
thank God for his good fortune in public, and, as was customary during the
recital of the Creed, to stand with upraised sword in defence of the Faith.
The Nobility participated in a great variety of religious celebrations. Special
attention was paid in Poland to Lady Day (2 February) with the associated cults