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Sack back gown

Sack back gown

  • Place of origin:

    France (made)

  • Date:

    1775-1780 (made)

  • Artist/Maker:

    unknown (production)

  • Materials and Techniques:

    Embroidered muslin, lined with silk, bobbin-lace net of linen thread, tambour embroidered, and lined with linen

  • Museum number:

    T.332-1985

  • Gallery location:

    In Storage

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This elegant gown of the late 1770s illustrates new developments in women’s fashion. Muslin, a very finely spun and woven cotton, began to rival silk in popularity as a dress fabric. This muslin has woven white stripes, alternating with tamboured (chain stitched with a hook instead of a needle) sprays of flowers in white silk thread. A pink silk lining added a delicate blush to the overall shade of the gown. The curvilinear arrangement of decoration seen in the 1760s was no longer fashionable when this gown was made, and the wide lengths of gathered net have been arranged in a straight line on either side of the gown opening.

Physical description

Sack back gown of embroidered, striped white muslin, lined with pink silk and trimmed with bobbin-made net of linen thread. Woven pattern of alternating narrow and wider vertical stripes. The wider stripes have tambour embroidered floral trails alternating with floral sprays. Trimmed around the collar and down the front with a band with a band of coarse linen bobbin net to which are applied fine cotton motifs in a curvilinear floral design. This band of trimming is slightly gauged and widens towards the hem. There is a narrow band of the same around the neck and a wide ruched band forms the cuffs. The robe is a sack, made with two full breadths in the back and a half breadth for each side of the front where the material falls in one length from the shoulder to the hem without a waist seam. The width at the hip is adjusted with a pink silk draw ribbon. At the hem, there is a narrow gore at each side seam. Inside, the fullness of the back is adjusted with 5 sets of tapes passing through eyelets in the coarse white linen lining. There is a tape waistband. The hem is bound and faced with coarse striped tape.

Place of Origin

France (made)

Date

1775-1780 (made)

Artist/maker

unknown (production)

Materials and Techniques

Embroidered muslin, lined with silk, bobbin-lace net of linen thread, tambour embroidered, and lined with linen

Dimensions

Width: 46.5 in muslin

Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)

Hart, Avril and Susan North. Historical Fashion in Detail: The 17th and 18th Centuries. London: V&A Publications, 1998, p.36

Materials

Silk (textile); Cotton (textile); Silk thread; Linen thread; Linen (material)

Techniques

Embroidered; Plain weave; Bobbin lace making; Lined; Tambour

Subjects depicted

Flowers; Floral sprays

Categories

Embroidery; Fashion; Women's clothes

Production Type

Unique

Collection code

T&D

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Qr_O127135
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