Corset colors indicated the status of Italian women in the 19th century

In 19th-century Italy, common women wore the corset over their chemise for all to see. The color of this garment allowed for the direct identification of the social status of the woman wearing it, and red was strictly reserved for married women. Many artists of the time, such as Philippe Van Brée in his 1832 painting, immortalized this popular sartorial tradition.