Bodice
1840s (made), 1850s (altered)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The 1840s saw the beginning of a long transition period between pockets as separate garments and those sewn into women’s clothes, when dressmakers began sewing pockets into skirt seams. But it is clear from surviving examples, paintings and literature that many women continued to wear separate pockets.
This is the type of pocket we are familiar with today, one intended to be part of a garment. It forms one piece of an unpicked dress of the 1840s. The glazed cotton pocket is lined along the opening with the green silk of the dress, so that it would show when the pocket is used.
This is the type of pocket we are familiar with today, one intended to be part of a garment. It forms one piece of an unpicked dress of the 1840s. The glazed cotton pocket is lined along the opening with the green silk of the dress, so that it would show when the pocket is used.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 4 parts.
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| Materials and techniques | Woven silk-satin lined with glazed cotton, whalebone support, machine stitched |
| Brief description | Bodice and parts, F., altered, green silk satin, lined with glazed cotton, British, 1840s-1850s. |
| Physical description | Green bodice with short sleeves and décolleté neckline. The waist at the front and back ends in a deep point. The bodice fastens at the back like a corset. The whalebone supports on the inside and the machine stitching were probably added in the 1850s. Decorated at the neck and waist with piping. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Given anonymously |
| Summary | The 1840s saw the beginning of a long transition period between pockets as separate garments and those sewn into women’s clothes, when dressmakers began sewing pockets into skirt seams. But it is clear from surviving examples, paintings and literature that many women continued to wear separate pockets. This is the type of pocket we are familiar with today, one intended to be part of a garment. It forms one piece of an unpicked dress of the 1840s. The glazed cotton pocket is lined along the opening with the green silk of the dress, so that it would show when the pocket is used. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.87:1 to 4-1999 |
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| Record created | August 19, 2002 |
| Record URL |
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