Dress
Unknown Artist
1871–76
Medium
silk
Classification
Dress
Culture
American
Department
Costume Institute
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Mrs. Louis G. Smith, 1940
Accession Number
C.I.40.62.2a, b
Art Historical Context
Step into the elegance of 1870s with this exquisite silk dress, crafted between 1871 and 1876 by an unknown artist Housed in the Metropolitan Museum Art's Costume Institute, garment exemplifies the opulent fashion of the post-Civil War era, time when American society embraced lavish styles influenced by European trends. Donated as a gift from Mrs. Louis G. in 1940, it offers a tangible glimpse into the daily grandeur of the Gilded Age's elite. Silk, the dress's luxurious medium, was a prized fabric symbolizing wealth and refinement. Sourced often from international trade routes, it draped bea...