Photos 1 & 2
The pronounced V-shaped base to the bodice could indicate a 1840s or 1850s date, but the sleeves confirm a year in the 1850s, being a modest version of the open ‘pagoda’ sleeves that dominated the decade
HOW TO GET IN TOUCH…
FACEBOOK/TWITTER
We welcome your family history queries, and try to answer as many as we can, but we do have a considerable backlog at the moment, so, if possible, we recommend in the first instance posting your query on facebook.com/familytreemaguk or tweet us @familytreemaguk and we’ll aim to help you there
EMAIL
If those options don’t suit, please email helen.t@family-tree.co.uk and we’ll be as quick as possible
Handstitched heirloom
Q We have a lovely bodice that belonged to one of our ancestors on our maternal line, though we’re not sure who. We would love it if you could date the bodice and also tell us about any other clues to it! Our best guess is that it’s late 1850s and we’re guessing maybe it was kept because the person wore it to their wedding. Or maybe they were just proud of their seamstress skills. We’d be delighted to hear what you think. Diana Burke & Helen Tovey via the magazine
A You are lucky to be one of the relatively few families who have inherited clothing actually worn by their ancestors and this is a fairly early garment dating from about 160 years ago – as you rightly suggest, the 1850s.
Except in wealthy families, in which the ladies frequently ordered new outfits, generally clothes were used time and again and, becoming worn, were rarely kept intact.
The exceptions to this are generally christening robes (which we feature periodically in Family Tree), wedding gowns and also mourning clothes – all costumes created for a specific purpose.
The V-shape bodice
This bodice appears to be fashioned from silk material and is lined, as was usual, in cotton fabric. As far as I can tell, it is partly machine-stitched, partly hand-sewn, the centre-front seam typical of early-Victorian bodices styled with the customary darts to either side, all three being boned, up to bust level. It is a back-fastening bodice, as was usual in the 1840s: during the 1850s front-fastening jacket-bodices became fashionable, although some formal bodices of the decade still display the traditional back fastening, as seen here.
The pagoda-style sleeves
Fashionable sleeves opened out progressively, attaining a very wide hanging shape by 1857/58, although that extreme trend may not have been taken up by everybody, the narrower style here undoubtedly a more wearable option. Open pagoda sleeves – narrow or wide – were usually teamed with dainty white under-sleeves or engageantes, separate items covering the lower arm and wrist and that were laundered regularly, for costly silk dresses could not be washed using detergents and water.
This bodice is evidently a formal daytime bodice: evening wear had a much lower décolletage and shorter sleeves. This neckline is round and would generally be set off by a detachable neat white collar, perhaps of lace or white-embroidered muslin, or, alternatively, by a white cravat or jabot – again a washable accessory that protected the gown from bodily contact at the neck.
The fringing
The styling of the bodice front is distinctive with its prominent fringing attached in a scalloped V-shape, also echoed on the sleeves. Fringing was a decorative technique much admired in the mid-late 1850s, but might occur slightly earlier. Together the sleeves, bodice style and trimming confirm a date in the 1850s, most likely mid-late 1850s.