Watch 19th century. Swiss. Gold & enamel. | THE MET
Man's robe C. 1830. French. Damascus silk and cut velvet. | Les Arts Decoratifs
Theatre costume 1917. Leon Bakst.
Costume for Mariuccia in Massine’s ballet Les Femmes de bonne humeur designed by Leon Bakst, Diaghilev Ballet 1917. Short-sleeved, panniered dress in gold satin with blue bow on the bodice, appliqued with a pink ‘lattice’ each enclosing a spray of stylized flowers and leaves in pink, green, magenta and blue. | V&A
Photo: Tamara Karsavina (Mariuccia) and Leonide Massine (Leonardo)] / photography by Foulsham & Banfield. [x]
Egyptian gold bangle 51–30 BC. Egyptian. Gold.
About the time of Cleopatra. The two coiled snakes are a symbol of protection and renewal. | In the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. Via National Geographic
Headdress Before 1880. Burma. Lacquer, wood and sheet metal, gilded and inlaid with pieces of glass. The high quality of this magnificent gilded, lacquer tiered headdress studded with brilliants was most likely a product of the court of Mandalay. Its shape is highly conventional and is similar to the crowns worn by Jambhupati Buddhas, royalty and minor deities. It was probably intended to be worn by an actor impersonating the king of Celestial Beings in a court pwe (theatrical production), and would have formed part of a costume based on 19th century ceremonial dress worn by Burmese kings on state occasions. The first Burmese court play was written in the early 18th century, and both puppet plays and theatrical performances with actors became very popular throughout Burma in the 18th and 19th centuries. These plays were usually linked to an incident from Burmese history or were based on one of the Buddhist Jatakas (stories about the Buddha's previous incarnations). | V&A
Ritual helmet 1677. Nepal. Gilt copper, set with stones. Elaborate crowns of this type are worn by Vajracaryas, Buddhist priests when officiating at religious ceremonies in Nepal. Vajracarya, "master of the thunderbolt", is both a caste and family name indicating those entitled to perform priestly functions. They command the highest rank in the Buddhist community, the equivalent of Brahmins in the Hindu context. They typically use both a vajra (thunderbolt sceptre) and ghanta (ritual bell) in these rituals. This crown has individually cast medallions depicting Bodhisattvas positioned around the dome, with Vairocana in the centre; each is framed within an elaborate foliate medallion. The crown is surmounted by a five-pronged half-vajra. A dated inscription (Nepal Samvat 797) invokes Vajrasattva, the supreme deity of the vajra sect. A number of these crowns have survived, but this example is the finest and most complete. | V&A
Javanese Royal Gold & Silver Embroidered Jacket Circa 1900. Java. Solo or Yogyakarta. Wool, metal threads.
This type of Jacket was worn by nobles and royals in the Islamic Courts of Solo and Yogyakarta. It is made in the European manner, either in Europe and exported to Java or possibly by a European who set up shop there. The ornate metal embroidery is highlighted by pailletes and the leaf design that edges the jacket is embroidered in alternating silver and gold thread. | M & H
Ear Ornament or Pendant (Mamuli) 19th century. Indonesia, Sumba Island, East Nusa Tenggara. Gold.
The distinctive ornaments known as mamuli play an essential role in the elaborate ceremonial gift exchanges practiced on important occasions by the people of Sumba Island in eastern Indonesia. In earlier times, when the Sumbanese practiced artificial elongation of the earlobes, mamuli were worn as ear ornaments, but today they hang around the neck as pendants. In Sumbanese culture, precious metals are believed to be of celestial origin. The sun is made of gold and the moon and stars of silver. Gold and silver are deposited on earth when the sun and moon set or shooting stars falls from the sky. Golden objects signify wealth and divine favor. Kept among the sacred relics housed in the treasuries of Sumbanese clans, mamuli serve, in part, to maintain contact with powerful ancestors and spirits. They are rarely removed from their hiding places lest their dangerous supernatural powers kill onlookers or cause natural disasters. This exquisitely detailed mamuli depicts warriors clad in turbans and loincloths brandishing swords and shields as they stride boldly into battle, accompanied by smaller figures in attitudes of supplication. | THE MET
Headdress circa 1920. Thailand (possibly Cambodia). Glass, Gilt Lacquer & Silver Dancer’s Headdress for Sita.
Dance dramas such as Thai versions of the Rama epic featuring Hanuman, king or the monkeys, Rama, and Sita, were very popular in the Kingdom of Siam in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Headdresses such as this particularly fine example were made for the dancer who played the key role of Sita. As heroine of the epic, she, like Rama, were attired regally with ornate costumes and spectacular crown-like headdresses. Lower ranking females such as princesses wore diadems rather than full crowns with tiered spires.
This headdress comprises gilded lacquer, black lacquer, wood, rawhide, faceted glass spangles, and silver. The glass spangles are mounted in a jour silver settings, in complex bands of silver wire, and with many mounted in flower-like settings en tremble on wire stems so that the spangles shimmied and moved in a frenetic and over-exaggerated fashion with any minor movement made by the dancer. The silver settings are particularly fine.
The crown incorporates a diadem with gilded rawhide flanges or wings that frame the dancer’s face on either side and which are embellished with fine wire netting inset with dozens of silver-mounted glass spangles.
Before the dancers performed, it was traditional for them to place their headdresses, diadems, masks and musical instruments on an altar along with offerings to respected teachers and spirits. After the ceremony, the headdresses were put on and a small, single fresh flower was tucked behind the ear (McGill, 2009, p. 108). | Michael Backman
Evening ensemble 1910. French. Silk & metal. Elegant at-home wear was an essential part of an upper class wardrobe at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. The tea gown, a structured and boned one-piece dress, was the first manifestation of a trend toward more comfortable attire for wearing in the presence of one's intimates. This ensemble, while elaborate, is significantly less restricting than a tea gown, yet, by the teens, was considered modest enough to be seen in. | THE MET
Caftan Caftan sewn from a lampas-woven textile, silk with gilded lamella of animal substrate. Eastern Islamic world or China; 1st half of 14th century. While the typical Arab caftan was closed in the front, the Mongol was closed on the side with a row of tapes, which in this caftan are attached to a reinforced piece around the waist. The pattern demonstrates a mixture of Eastern and Western influences. The drop-shaped elements with stylized lions and surrounding swastika shapes point to China, while the stylized border with Kufi pseudo-calligraphy on the shoulders is an Islamic feature that has its origins in Arab tiraz textiles. These textiles worked with gold were costly, and although a number of smaller parts of the same pattern were used to complete the caftan, an extra piece of another type nonetheless had to be used as well. Most of the gold has been lost, and the areas that were once golden are now brown. | The David Collection
Vest 1800–1810, American or European. Silk & linen. | THE MET
Evening coat House of Worth. Jean-Philippe Worth. Ca. 1902. French. Silk. This dramatic coat is very indicative of the Art Nouveau style which was popular at the turn of the century. The sinuous curves of the textile and the symmetrical seaming make this exemplary of the House of Worth's design aesthetic which was well retained throughout its run. | THE MET
Necklace Europe (West). Ca. 1660 (bow) 1800-1900 (chain and pendant). Enamelled gold set with table-cut diamonds, hung with a pearl and a large polished sapphire.
Necklace based on the bow motif. Small bows in alternating turquoise/black and white/turquoise enamel are linked together to form the chain; at the front is a large diamond-set bow with flowers and sapphire and pearl drop. The bow made in Western Europe, about 1660, the chain and pendant probably made 1800-1900. | V&A
Dress Date: ca. 1865. Culture: French. Medium: silk, wool. | THE MET
Ball gown Emile Pingat (French, active 1860–96), Date: ca. 1860, Culture: French, Medium: silk. | THE MET
Bodice Third quarter 19th century, Swiss, silk, metal & cotton. | THE MET