Pelisse thumbnail 1
Not on display

Pelisse

ca. 1809 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The lightweight nature of women’s dress in the 1790s and early 1800s required an extra layer when worn outdoors. A front-opening coat, or pelisse, with long sleeves and high collar was fashionable for outdoor wear. Similar examples are illustrated in fashion journals such as La Belle Assemblée and the Lady’s Monthly Museum of 1810. This example is made of shot red and blue silk with a decorative braid over the shoulder and side seams at the back.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Silk, lined with silk, trimmed with silk braid, hand-sewn
Brief description
Woman's pelisse of shot red and blue silk long sleeves with high neck. English 1808-10
Physical description
This is mid-calf length, cut straight except for small pleats at the centre of the back of the waist where the matching belt is attached. The fronts are cut without a waist seam and can wrap across to fasten with an inner silk tie, or to be held by the belt. The most striking feature is the back bodice, a panel emphasized by braid trimming on shoulder and side seams. It gets its distinctive shape from the sharp slope of the shoulder seams up to the collar and the slightly gathered head of the long straight sleeve. The coat is lined in blue silk.
Dimensions
  • Length: 126.5cm (nape of neck to hem)
  • Height: 7.5cm (of collar)
  • Width: 26cm (back panel)
Credit line
Given by Miss M. D. Nicholson
Summary
The lightweight nature of women’s dress in the 1790s and early 1800s required an extra layer when worn outdoors. A front-opening coat, or pelisse, with long sleeves and high collar was fashionable for outdoor wear. Similar examples are illustrated in fashion journals such as La Belle Assemblée and the Lady’s Monthly Museum of 1810. This example is made of shot red and blue silk with a decorative braid over the shoulder and side seams at the back.
Bibliographic reference
Rothstein, Natalie. Four Hundred Years of Fashion. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1984. ISBN: 1851771166.
Collection
Accession number
T.24-1946

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Record createdDecember 15, 1999
Record URL
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