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c. 1740-1780 United States |
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Provenance: I purchased this apron in New York state. No family history/documentation available. The fabric was probably made and embroidered in the East (India?) for the Western market. Condition: Excellent for its' age. There are a few 1/4" holes and one 1/2" hole. Also, three 1" brown stains, several tiny stains and several period mends. Measurements: 38"W x 38" L. Comments: Museum quality and extremely rare. An unusual example of a ladies formal apron meant to be worn with a fashionable 18th century open gown. The top of the apron is cut to mold to the wearer's waist. Also at the apron's top is a narrow channel, turned and hemmed, for the draw string tie. The whimsical figures embroidered on the apron clearly demonstrate the 18th century passion for Chinoiserie: a bird alighting on a carnation swoops to catch a butterfly, a leopard leaps out of the forest, a figure serenely offers the viewer a flowering branch. With exquisite attention to detail these and other motifs are embroidered in linen and embellished with drawn-work. The scale used for these motifs is large for such a dainty apron. Perhaps the original owner enjoyed bold statements in her dress! In my own reference library I found several examples of 18th century handwork of a similar sensibility. The Wadsworth Atheneum's exhibition catalog, Dress from Three Centuries, shows a similar patterned embroidery on the c. 1750-1775 dress shown on pages 10 & 11. Linda Baumgarten's Eighteenth-Century Clothing at Williamsburg has white on white muslin aprons pictured on pages 40 & 43. Last, but by no means least, in the Cora Ginsburg 1999 Costume, Textiles, Needlework catalog a c. 1720 Chinoiserie Crewel Curtain is featured as the final offering in the catalog; the embroidery motifs and arrangement is remarkably similar to those in the apron offered here for sale. |
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