Abstract
The hiring fair in England had another name the "Mop Fair" which originated in the story that woman looked for a job of housemaid with a mop for the sign. This study focused on the symbolic function of the costume at the hiring fair in the Victorian age from the description of T. Hardy's novels and using some photographs and paintings. The following results are made clearly : Firstly, the costume and properties that the employees worn suggested their job. Secondly, the smock and the crook were recognised as a shepherd's ordinary costume. Finally, many smocks for shepherds had round-smock shape and were longer than carter's one. The shape and the length of the smock were useful to distinguish the occupation of employees.
