Not on display

Evening Dress

ca. 1818 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Machine-made net was developed from the late 1760s. It became a popular ground for embroidery and machine-made laces. Its light weight and airy texture suited the simple style of early 19th century women’s dress. This example in black allows for a dramatic contrast when worn over a white under-dress. The applied satin rolls and rosettes at the hem and shoulders were a new decorative trend in women’s dress, which was moving away from the very plain styles of earlier Neo-classical dress. Between 1815 and 1820 the waist was very high, reducing the bodice to narrow strips of fabric at the front and back.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Machine made silk net, embroidered with silk, trimmed with satin decoration, wired epaulettes, hand-sewn
Brief description
Evening dress, ca. 1818, English; Embroidered black net with applied decoration
Physical description
The dress is trimmed at the hem with padded black satin rouleaux and rosettes. The bodice has a low, square neck and fastens at the back with tapes. It is very short-waisted with slight fullness eased in at the front. The gored skirt is attached smoothly except for a wide panel of tight gathering at the back. The epaulettes are wired and, like the cuffs on the long sleeves, made from satin with an applied cord decoration.
Dimensions
  • Centre back length: 107cm
  • Shoulder to hem length: 119cm
  • Waist circumference: 59cm
Credit line
Given by Misses H. and M. Hague
Summary
Machine-made net was developed from the late 1760s. It became a popular ground for embroidery and machine-made laces. Its light weight and airy texture suited the simple style of early 19th century women’s dress. This example in black allows for a dramatic contrast when worn over a white under-dress. The applied satin rolls and rosettes at the hem and shoulders were a new decorative trend in women’s dress, which was moving away from the very plain styles of earlier Neo-classical dress. Between 1815 and 1820 the waist was very high, reducing the bodice to narrow strips of fabric at the front and back.
Collection
Accession number
T.175-1922

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdDecember 15, 1999
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest