Afternoon dress skirt
Peter Robinson Mourning Warehouse
Category
Costume
Date
1889
Materials
Silk, linen, cotton, metal
Measurements
690 mm (W)
Place of origin
Regent Street
Collection
Killerton, Devon
NT 1363090.2
Summary
Part of a two piece afternoon dress of black silk figured with silvery cream and grey willow leaf design. Skirt; trained, with false 'open-robe' front, pleated back; double pleated underfrill of self fabric and black silk; lined black silk, with muslin and machine-lace frill; train padded and lined with stiff muslin and frill. Made by Peter Robinson Mourning Warehouse, Regent Street. (woven into waistband). 1889 (circa)
Provenance
Acquired by the National Trust in 1986 from Nancy Bradfield, author and illustrator of books relating to English Costume. Displayed by the National Trust at Killerton in 1987, 1991, 1996 and 2008. Worn by Florence Woolward (1854-1936) an English botanical illustrator and author. Florence moved to Belton village as a young girl and grew up in the Rectory there. Her father was a Rector and domestic chaplain for Earl Brownlow of Belton. As a teenager, Florence showed an early aptitude for painting and, with access to Belton’s garden and Pleasure Grounds, she captured the landscapes and plants that she saw around her. Self-taught, she developed an incredible eye for detail, reinforced by a detailed knowledge of plants that she gained from her parents. It is thought that the Brownlow family brought Florence’s painting talents to the attention of the 9th Marquess of Lothian. He housed a huge collection of orchids at his family home of Newbattle Abbey. Impressed by her talent the Marquess commissioned Florence to create a visual record of his orchid collection. This was published in parts between 1891 and 1896 as "The Genus Masdevallia". The dress was passed to Nancy Bradfield by Miss Evelyn Joan Woolward, great niece of Florence Woolward, in 1973.
Marks and inscriptions
Peter Robinson Mourning Warehouse, Regent Street (woven into waistband)
Makers and roles
Peter Robinson Mourning Warehouse, maker