> A zibellino, flea-fur or fur tippet is a women's fashion accessory popular in the later 15th and 16th centuries. A zibellino, from the Italian word for "sable", is the pelt of a sable or marten worn draped at the neck or hanging at the waist, or carried in the hand. The plural is zibellini. Some zibellini were fitted with faces and paws of goldsmith's work with jeweled eyes and pearl earrings, while unadorned furs were also fashionable.
TIL today's fashion really is no dumber than it was 5 centuries ago.
Take note of the name: flea-fur. IIRC, the idea was that fleas, lice, and other parasites would jump onto the fur rather than you.
I doubt it worked, but people weren't any smarter back then, either.
Well, dead mustelids (and vulpines) are still used as fashion items.
That is a very interesting website, some freaky stuff on there.