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This module examines eighteenth-century artefacts as historical evidence and considers how they can be of value to historians in understanding the past.
In the academic year 2018-19 it will focus on the decorative arts in eighteenth-century Europe and examine the production, retailing and consumption of luxury goods from porcelain to silver. Who were the arbiters of taste and fashion during this period? What was ‘new’? How did developments in terms of fashionable living generate keen demand for new categories of goods. The way in which luxury goods were manufactured, advertised and sold will be examined using a wide range of primary sources, including letters, diaries, wills, inventories and trade ephemera.
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EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY MATERIAL CULTURE
