The ZB Library exhibit, Sterke Vrouwen, features Spirited Women of Zeeland around the same time in history. It highlights the traditional Walcherse clothing.

Klederdracht

Traditional Costumes

Women wore long dresses with rich embroidery and a special cap called a kap. The cap changed based on a woman’s age and marital status. Walcheren women wore a Swiss lace under-cap with a langettenmuts (lace and ribbon cap) over the oorijzers and under-cap. Framing a woman’s face were the metal spial oorijzers which were adorned with metal pendants.

Another defining feature was the beuk. This breast cloth was traditionally adorned with detailed embroidery of symbols representing the wearer’s life and beliefs. This intimate detail faded out toward the end of the 19th century and was most commonly replaced with a plain white embroidered breast cloth.

Men wore simpler outfits with dark trousers and jackets, usually of black corduroy or velvet, that were practical for the coast.

Traditional costumes are still worn for folk festivals and special occasions such as ring riding, horse-drawn carriage rides, and Straô, an annual tradition in the Netherlands, where riders lead decorated horses to the beach for a ceremonial bath in the sea. This event, rooted in ancient customs, celebrates the arrival of spring and the connection between horses and the community.