A man's suit of coat, waistcoat and breeches, 1725-1735, Brown silk, woven-to-shape

A man's formal day suit of brown silk. The coat has a narrow binding of silk around the neck. The sleeves are cut in two, shaped pieces, loosely fitted and ending above the wrist with deep, open, round cuff - 19 cm at the front, 32.0 cm at the back. The front edges curve from neckline to mid-chest, continuing straight down the front. The fronts are fitted to the torso, with wide skirts below the hip. These are arranged in two pleats (ca. 25 cm deep) at the front side and one pleat at the back. There is an inverted pleat on each side of the centre back skirt opening. There are scalloped pocket flaps just below the hip level on each front. The sleeves and pockets are lined with coarse unbleached linen. The coat and pocket flaps are lined with white silk satin. The coat fronts are thickly interlined. The coat fronts, back opening, pocket flaps and cuffs are woven to shape in a floral design with brown silk floss and silk frisé. There are 16 woven-to-shape, silk-covered buttons on the right front (one missing), with 7 buttonholes on the left, corresponding to the top 7 buttons. There are two of the same button on each pocket flap, 3 below the pocket, 5 at the top of each sleeve cuff, one at the top of the side pleats and 4 holding the pleats together.

The waistcoat is made of two fronts of silk, slightly shorter than the coat, and two shorter backs of coarse, unbleached linen with a border of the silk at the bottom. The waistcoat fronts and pocket flaps are lined with white satin, the pockets with finer unbleached linen. The waistcoat fronts and pocket flaps are woven to shape in the same floral design as the coat, but in white silk floss and silk frisé. There are 17 woven-to-shape silk covered buttons on the right front. Underneath the left front edge is a white satin band with 8 buttonholes, corresponding to the top 8 buttons. There is a coarse linen tape on each side of the linen back for adjustment.

The breeches are made of the same silk as the coat and waistcoat, with a high front waist and closed waistband at the back. The back legs have one small pleat near the centre back to fit the waistband. The breeches have a fall front, a watch pocket on the right side of the waistband, and a pocket with corner flap on each side. The waistband and fall front are lined with unbleached linen; the legs and pockets with brown cotton. The left corner flap has a remnant of the brown silk figured pattern of the coat and there is a small area of the waistcoat's white figured pattern at the top of the back right leg. Three silk-covered buttons fasten the waistband and fronts, two more on the waistband fasten the fall; another two the pocket flaps. There are an additional two buttons on the front waistband. Each leg fastens on the outside with 5 of the same buttons and buttonholes. The lower edge of each leg has a knee band with buttonhole for a buckle.

The back has been relined with brown cotton, probably in the 19th century.

Purchased. Registered File number 30319/1902.

This is an example of a man’s matching coat, waistcoat and breeches from the late 1720s or early 1730s. It is an early example of a ‘woven to shape’ coat and waistcoat. The pattern outlining the front edges and hem of the coat and waistcoat were woven on the loom, so that the resulting length of silk could only be made into a coat and waistcoat. The pattern of the coat was woven in brown thread on a similarly coloured ground, while the same design on the waistcoat was executed in white thread on brown ground for a contrasting effect. The sleeve of the coat has a deep open cuff, reaching up to the elbow. It is cut in a wide curve, characteristic of the late 1720s and 1730s.

938 to B-1902