Strictly historically accurate writing, set and costume design, and dialogue is often counter-productive. Few audience members will have the historical knowledge to appreciate the differences between distant eras, and they often have muddled expectations of what they would be like. And in any case, for some eras genuine examples of or guides towards clothes, artifacts or items that they would have used in the time in question may be in short supply or sketchy at best, forcing props and costume designers to speculate or do the best with what they have. Thus, it is sometimes more effective to imply a general sense of 'the past' drawn in broad strokes rather than bog the story down with exposition and pedantry. More often, writers and producers are too lazy or have too little time to get the