You might find getting the right medieval picture costs you alot in copyright fees. (and you always have to be careful that another book hasn't alredy used it! I like the idea of the modern replicas - perhaps also with a garment showing a seam? Detailed picture sof this sort of thing seem quite 'the thing' these days. Don't worry, you'll have a flash of inspiration for it, just don't think too hard about it!
How about a medieval picture of someone(s) wearing (a) style(s) covered in the book? Perhaps combined with a Medieval picture of some aspect of garment construction in process?
Failing that (if you do run into copyright issues, though why you should for something first published that long ago I don't know), do you know any artists who work in a Medieval style?
Thanks for the input, everybody!
The copyright/reproduction fees is an issue, yes, so the picture must not be too expensive. At the moment, I'm leaning towards a mixed or modern picture. I like the suggestion of a detail picture, too...
I'll play around with a few ideas, and will keep you updated on the results.
Yes, that would be another option that I'm also considering... although most tailor's shops show several people: sewing, fitting, somebody being fitted, someone cutting... and doing a "reproduction shot" is unfortunately a lot of work. (I did before. It's fun, but it takes ages.) For a tailor's shop reproduction photo, I'll also need quite a bit of setup - something like a stall with rods to hang the clothes, a table, bench, ... all things I don't have readily available. But I'm keeping it in mind, maybe something will come up.
What exactly would you be looking for? In June, our regional SCA group holds a large War/re-enactment, and one part is a tailor shop. (This is in the USA midwest.) The Tailor shop has a nice period-style table, little stools for the workers, and they handsew a set of garments from start to finish during the week. If you had a sketch of what you wanted included, perhaps we could set it up. It would be fun, and not something that would cost you. eleanordeyeson@yahoo.com