Fur has been used in fashion for centuries. From the earliest recorded time it has been known that fur was worn by people to protect their bodies from harsh climates. Furs and animal skins were popular due to their warmth, durability and now their status symbol.
Early societies saw animal skins and furs with mystical and spiritual powers. They believed that some of the characteristics and powers of the creature the product used to belong to would be passed on the the person wearing the product. This meant that hunters would wear skins and furs so that they could gain techniques which would help them to hunt.
With furs being made increasingly popular and exclusive, in the 11th century some countries reserved their furs for royalty as they didn’t want anyone to look more higher in social status than the king or queen. There were even laws in countries such as France which meant that people in certain social classes were made to wear different classes of fur. These laws meant that certain social classes were picked out and everyone could see how wealthy others were from looking at what clothes and furs they were wearing.
However, later in European societies furs started to be seen as a status symbol. People of Western Europe and North America in the 13th and 14th century enjoyed wearing furs as they were used to express their social status. Furs were also seen as modern and anyone who could afford to wear them was put at a higher social rank.
Since the 1980s there has been issues raised around the ethics of all animal products. With the views of organisations such as PETA brands have started to use less fur and are gradually bring in alternatives such as faux fur. However, fur hasn’t been completely abolished by the work of activists and is still very popular.
Abigail Phillips 