Coat

Unknown

19th century · leather · Costume Institute

The "noble savage" is a conceit of the Enlightenment, evidence of the imperialist dialectic between "civilized" Europeans and the "uncivilized" inhabitants of the new and exotic colonies. A common consequence of colonization was the fusion of Western and indigenous dress, as can be seen in the fringed coat of the Métis of North America. Cut in the style of a nineteenth-century frock coat, it is made from buckskin ornamented with floral motifs and roundels.

Artist

Unknown

Date

19th century

Medium

leather

Culture

probably American

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Museum Purchase, 1942