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Support Hyperallergic’s independent arts journalism for as little as $8 per month. Become a Member Did you know that one Icelandic witchcraft ritual dating back to the 16th century involved the careful de-gloving of skin off the bottom half of human corpses for the living to wear as a pair of magical breeches called nábrók ? Or that tight-laced corsets were historically blamed for tuberculosis, epilepsy, and ugly children? These tidbits of fashion history are among hundreds woven seamlessly into British writer Nina Edwards’s newest book, The Virtues of Underwear: Modesty, Flamboyance, and Filth (2024). Published by Reaktion Books, Edwards’s 253-page text on the origins and evolution of underwear is supplemented by 89 historical illustrations and photos — 24 of which are printed in color on glossy pages — pertaining to the cultural, social, gendered, and economic import of these “ unmentionables .
” Drawing from fastidious research, Edwards braids innumerable insights into contextual narrative in an approachable yet non-linear manner. The result is a meandering yet engaging story that manages to maintain an entertaining grip on even the most TikTok-addled attention span. Serving as a sweeping introduction into the world .