Pudding hat

Headpieces

Soft bumper
Watch out! Be careful! Don't run! How many times did you hear that when you were a child? Concerned parents used to give their children a pudding hat. It was specially designed for toddlers who could just walk. It was a thick, soft roll that was tied around the head with straps. A kind of bumper. In this way the child did not immediately land on his head when it fell. One of the first books on pediatrics (written in 1577) already advised educators to protect the head of a child learning to walk with a cotton-filled band 'divided into four like a royal crown'. Pudding hats were often beautifully decorated with ribbons. 

Zaanstreek, before 1975. © Collection The Holland Open Air Museum

 

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