Waistcoat thumbnail 1
Waistcoat thumbnail 2
+5
images
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
British Galleries, Room 53a

This object consists of 3 parts, some of which may be located elsewhere.

Waistcoat

1740s (made), 1870 - 1910 (altered)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Eighteenth-century buttons are often elaborately worked, as seen in these examples made in the passementerie technique. The wooden core has five indentations on the top, into which silver foil has been pressed. Silver thread and purl (metal thread wound into a short coil) have been embroidered around the indentations. Such elaborate buttons complement the dense needlework, composed of coloured silks and a variety of silver threads embroidered in a late Baroque pattern of large flowers and leaves.

This waistcoat is thought to have been worn by William Morshead of Carthuther, Cornwall at his wedding to Olympia Treise in 1745.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 3 parts.

  • Waistcoat
  • Cuff
  • Cuff
Materials and techniques
Embroidered satin with silk and silver threads, lined with ribbed silk and fustian
Brief description
Man's sleeved waistcoat of cream satin, embroidered with silk and silver threads, England, 1740s
Physical description
Man's sleeved waistcoat of embroidered ivory satin with silk and silver threads, lined with ivory ribbed silk and fustian. The cuffs of the associated coat have been added to the waistcoat. With a floral design.
Production typeUnique
Object history
This waistcoat is associated with the marriage of William Morshead (b. 1722) to Olympia Treise at Blisland, Bodmin, Cornwall, on 23 April 1745. Olympia Treise was the daughter and heiress of John Treise of Lavethan, Cornwall, while William went on to become Sheriff of Cornwall
Subjects depicted
Summary
Eighteenth-century buttons are often elaborately worked, as seen in these examples made in the passementerie technique. The wooden core has five indentations on the top, into which silver foil has been pressed. Silver thread and purl (metal thread wound into a short coil) have been embroidered around the indentations. Such elaborate buttons complement the dense needlework, composed of coloured silks and a variety of silver threads embroidered in a late Baroque pattern of large flowers and leaves.

This waistcoat is thought to have been worn by William Morshead of Carthuther, Cornwall at his wedding to Olympia Treise in 1745.
Bibliographic reference
Hart, Avril and Susan North, Historical Fashion in Detail: The 17th and 18th Centuries, London: V&A Publications, 1998, p. 114
Collection
Accession number
T.94:1, 2-1931

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Record createdAugust 16, 2006
Record URL
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