Dress

Unknown

1845–50 · wool, cotton · Costume Institute

This is a very high-styled, hand-sewn infant's dress mimicking the fashionable 1840s V-shaped gather bodice configuration from center front shirring. It is finely finished in all aspects including the well-sewn integral lining, the self ruffles with binding at the edges, and the fine piping around the neck. The lightweight sheer wool of the dress is known as albatross, so named because it is soft as the underbelly of the albatross.

Artist

Unknown

Date

1845–50

Medium

wool, cotton

Culture

American

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Grace Coleman, 1927