Umbrella

Mark W. Cross

ca. 1915 · silk, metal, wood, ivory, composition · Costume Institute

The firm of Mark Cross was founded in 1845 as a saddle and harness maker, but shifted to luxury leather goods and accessories as the automobile began to replace the horse. Everything about this umbrella expresses high quality and refinement: the angled end of the elegantly simple crook handle, the exaggerated size and the curved shape of the rib tips, the ivory and gilt fittings, the silk cover with self-finished edge, and the smooth, slender mechanism. The final statement of its luxury status is the gold monogram mount on the handle.

Artist

Mark W. Cross

Date

ca. 1915

Medium

silk, metal, wood, ivory, composition

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 Hope Jenvey, 1967