V&A
Lavender Silk Satin Hand-Embroidered Evening Mantle
Edwardian · 1900s · French
Designer
House of Worth
Production
haute couture
Material
silk satin
Culture
French
Movement
Orientalism
Influences
Japanese kimono silhouette · Oriental wrapper style
A luxurious purple silk satin mantle featuring elaborate hand-embroidered floral motifs in gold, pink, and green threads. The garment wraps around the body in a loose, flowing silhouette with wide sleeves that create dramatic draping. The embroidery depicts stylized flowers and foliage scattered across the surface in an asymmetrical pattern. The mantle is secured with ties at the waist, creating soft gathers in the fabric. The rich purple base color provides a sumptuous backdrop for the metallic and colored thread work. This represents the height of Edwardian luxury fashion, combining Eastern-inspired silhouettes with Western embellishment techniques.
coatloose fitsurplicefloor length
Connected To
Movement·OrientalismWorn with·corset
SHARED20 years · cross-culture
These two mantles trace the arc of Western fashion's Oriental fever dream, from the Victorian obsession with exotic textures to the Edwardian embrace of kimono silhouettes.
Echoes Across Time
Edwardian → 2000s · 90yr56%
SHARED
These two pieces trace the long arc of Western fashion's fascination with Asian aesthetics, but with completely different levels of authenticity and restraint. The Edwardian mantle wraps its wearer in pure fantasy—that draped lavender silk with delicate floral embroidery speaks to an era when "Oriental" meant exotic escapism for wealthy Western women who'd never set foot in Asia.
Movement·Orientalism
Edwardian → Victorian Early / Crinoline · 40yr55%
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