Dutch traditional clothing is very beautiful, but not many people know much about it anymore. This article is about the kaper or böppekaper, which is a cap or hat that was worn in several areas in The Netherlands. It’s also sometimes named a hersenlap or brain rag.
A kaper was worn against the cold and as a head covering to protect the gold and silver jewellery. A kaper can be two things. Either it’s a sort of hood with a border made of silk, or another material. It was sometimes lined with felt or other materials. This version was worn in several areas in The Netherlands, but stayed the most popular in the Zaan region and on the island of Wieringen for a long time where it was also worn when it was not cold (it was also used during funerals for instance). It could be kept in shape due to cardboard and other materials. They would wear the kaper on top of their oorijzers and ondermuts.
Then you have a woollen version of the kaper, which was most commonly worn by girls until 12 to 14 years old, and depending on the area, also by women during winter time. These were knitted from sajet wool and some versions have pompons on them. It also has a nice collar, so this keeps you warm in winter. They wore the kaper on top of their ondermuts or under the cap.
Especially the woollen versions were worn all throughout The Netherlands: from Volendam and Spakenburg to Huizen and Zuid- Beveland.
The most common colours are black and blue and there were small differences between the kapers from different regions, but most were very similar. The version of Volendam for instance has a decoration on top of the head of a square with curved corners in the same colour and decorated with ribbons and buttons.
The wool versions of the kaper are said to have been worn from around 1860 until the 20th century. The bigger versions of fabrics like silk were worn way earlier.
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