This code of colours was unique to Staithes

Which is situated here on the East Coast of England

The women of the town carried fish baskets on their head

When transferring the catch when their men returned

And the bonnets were designed with this in mind

The wide brim was there to stop the sun

And the bonnets went over the neck

To stop the fish slipping down their backs

Which would not have been a nice experience

But what about the colours Joe

There are three in this painting if you look closely

It was an unseen language Josie

As the white bonnets were worn

By girls and the unmarried women

Whereas the black bonnets were worn

By women who had been widowed

Which often happened when their men were at sea

But there are also purple ones noted in this painting

The purple bonnets indicated that the widow was coming out of mourning

Which usually lasted between six months and a year

What I find surprising is that some of the women wearing purple

Are not much more than young girls themselves

In a way this is a social commentary of the time

I am so grateful that you brought me here

As this part of England was unknown to me

If you look apart from the bonnets

There are great similarities with Deal

As both depended on the generosity of the sea

Today both towns have grown much softer

But one can still quite easily see the harsh conditions

And the lives spent and often extinguished

By the primitive industry of those bleak forgotten days