The first pieces of underwear can be traced back to the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Greece, when it seems their use was widely functional. In the Middle Ages, members of the European nobility began to wear straightforward linen clothes under richly decorated and expensive outer dresses. Small, firm breasts were back in vogue, and women wore a multitude of corset-like variations. These early forms of the corset generally emerged in the fifteenth century. The corsets disadvantages were in the rigid centrepiece, known as the basque, which would sometimes impede digestion and damage ribs. Toward the end of the Renaissance, the padded silhouette came into being, with a flat stomach and narrow waist. The style became greatly overstated during the seventeenth century when the frame achieved astonishing proportions, the corsets disadvantages transformed into a near straitjacket, moulding women's bodies into abnormal shapes, led to impede digestion, damage ribs and used as an pretentious display of the rich, highly decorated dress fabrics of the day. In the eighteenth century, although women ruled the elegant society of the salons, the corset still ruled their bodies, which attained an artistry never seen before in undergarments. During the nineteenth century, the extent and style of underwear worn by women reached extremes, and women's figures were completely exaggerated: vast full sleeves, a miniscule corseted waist, embracing all corsets disadvantages, followed by whalebone hoops, that were sure to impede digestion, damage ribs and crinolines covered with yards of fabric, flounces and trims. The bustle highlighted women's bottoms, and frilled pantaloons and multiple layers of petticoats created full skirts. So unobtainable did the female body become beneath the layers of underwear that taking it off created its own form of sexual anticipation and spawned the first striptease shows. Retailers such as Victorias Secret and La Perla grew in prominence, as women demanded a softer styling and sensuality returned, bringing back a basque corset revival together with its matching briefs and stockings. Women at this time longed to wear something lacy and luxurious underneath their outerwear. Avant-garde designers such as Vivienne Westwood and Jean Paul Gaultier started to play with the concept of underwear as outerwear, where corsetry and bras were utilized as fashionable outerwear, inspired by the punk street fashions of the late seventies. The publicity and exposure that ensued guaranteed that the corset was to make a comeback in the 1990s. The essential condition of the corset performing its functions perfectly is the quality of corset materials and its construction. Such corsets disadvantages as poor quality will be greatly detrimental to health. The corsets disadvantages can easily be eliminated by adjusting the item individually. It is generally recommended that corsets be tailored individually, in order for them to copy the tiniest individual body properties. Poorely adjusted corsets can impede digestion and even damage ribs. It is also possible that nerves can be pinched, resulting in pain and discomfort.