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Updated: June 7, 2025
Silke, much better then that which commeth from Persia, 11 duckats and a halfe the bateman, and euery bateman here maketh 7 pound and 5 ounces English waight. From Babylon the 20 day of Iuly, 1583. Yours, Iohn Newberie. Master Newberie his letter from Ormus, to M. Iohn Eldred and William Shals at Balsara.
It was told me of them that came last from Persia, that here is more silke brought into some one city of Persia, then is of cloth brought into the city of London.
I have of late taken too much cold by washing my feet and going in a thin silke waistcoate, without any other coate over it, and open-breasted, but I hope it will go over. Thence by coach to St. Thence to the Hall and with Mrs.
We were mighty merry; and, after dinner, I carried them and my wife out by coach to the New Exchange, and there I did give my valentine, Mrs. Pierce, a dozen payre of gloves, and a payre of silke stockings, and Knipp for company's sake, though my wife had, by my consent, laid out 20s. upon her the other day, six payre of gloves.
This morning my brother's man brought me a new black baize waistecoate, faced with silke, which I put on from this day, laying by half-shirts for this winter.
The 20 day we manned our fiue boats, and also a great boat of the Frenchmens with our men and the Admirals, 12 of them in their murrians and corsets, and the rest all well appoynted, with foure trumpets, a drumme and a Fife, and the boate all hanged with streamers of Silke and pendants very faire, and went into the riuer and traffiqued, our man of warre lying off and on in the riuer to waft vs, but we heard no more of the Portugals.
But a very pretty dinner there was, and after dinner Sir W. Pen made a bargain with Cocke for ten bales of silke, at 16s. per lb., which, as Cocke says, will be a good pennyworth, and so away to the Prince and presently comes my Lord on board from Greenwich, with whom, after a little discourse about his trusting of Cocke, we parted and to our yacht; but it being calme, we to make haste, took our wherry toward Chatham; but, it growing darke, we were put to great difficultys, our simple, yet confident waterman, not knowing a step of the way; and we found ourselves to go backward and forward, which, in the darke night and a wild place, did vex us mightily.
In 1651 the General Court again expressed its "utter detestation and dislike that men or women of meane condition, education and callings should take uppon them the garbe of gentlemen by the wearinge of gold or silver lace or buttons or poynts at their knees, to walke in great boots, or women of the same rank to wear silke or tiffany hoodes or scarfes."
Silkes are brought from no place, but are wrought all in their owne countrey. Ormus is within two miles of the maine land of Persia, and the Portingals fetch their fresh water there, for the which they pay tribute to the Shaugh or king of Persia. There is brought into Persia an incredible summe of Dutch dollars, which for the most part are there imploied in raw silke.
I need only refer to the well-known jealousy, among English haberdashers and milliners, of the superior craft of Continental workmen, behind whom English weavers lagged: Henry the Eighth used to have to wear hose cut out of pieces of cloth on that leg of which he was so proud unless "by great chance there came a paire of Spanish silke stockings from Spaine."
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