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Clothing and Accessories
Women's Clothing
Clothing Accessories
Headwear ➔ Mourning Hat
Identifier:
1982.150.7Description:
This mourning bonnet has a tri-colored crown of straw and features artificial fabric flowers, a lace overlay, and velvet trim. In Victorian society, it was customary to follow a strict etiquette for mourning royalty, political leaders and of course for relatives. This hat is a characteristic example of a key accessory that was required as part of the ritual. The production of mourning clothing was a lucrative business and items like this hat were commonly purchased.The fashion industry had perfected the art of black synthetic dying and so almost any item of clothing or accessories from dresses to headwear or footwear could be purchased in black for mourning. For poorer families, this could be quite a financial burden as it could involve having to purchase a whole new wardrobe. The later stage of the custom, called "half-mourning", would require integrating the colors grey, white and purple into one's wardrobe, indicating the ending phase.
Date:
circa 1890Materials:
Velvet, Straw, Lace, Artificial Flowers, Wire, Muslin, SatinDimensions:
7 in" h 6.5 in" w 4 in" dCurrent Location Status:
In StorageCollection Tier:
Tier 2Source:
Gift Of Nancy WykesRelated Entities:
Siegels (creator)Siegels was located at 50-52 Monroe Street in Grand Rapids Michigan. Miss Nancy Wykes (donor)
