Coat

Unknown

1790s · silk · Costume Institute

This young man’s tailcoat, with its high turned-down collar, narrow back, and wide lapels, exemplifies the exaggerated silhouette fashionable in post-revolutionary France. Striped textiles, modish from the 1760s, were ubiquitous in the dress of both sexes by the end of the century. In menswear, stripes served as a decorative substitute for the ornate, polychrome embroidery of earlier suits. The trend reflects the influence of Orientalism and neoclassical taste; in earlier centuries, stripes had pejorative connotations in the West and were associated with the clothing of socially marginalized groups.

Artist

Unknown

Date

1790s

Medium

silk

Culture

French

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Purchase, NAMSB Foundation Inc. Gift, 1999