I looked it up to be sure. From the look of the plain / not brocade overskirt, I think this is a polonaise. A sack-back would have a pleated back drape from the shoulders rather a gathered / ruched overskirt.
Excellent point. I was wondering that because of the stitching / flounce / join at the top of the skirt making it more of the 'round' shape.
I'd love to know more about where this photo is from.
I see the artwork in the picture - so perhaps that is a clue.
The other thing is that, while there were distinct styles at the time, often women would combine elements to suit their own tastes. Women have never been a monolith! So a poof here, a draping there..it's all possible. AND, the literally cut the pattern to fit their cloth...
The style is called a mantua, which I understand came prior to the sack back and polonaise. Someone with more actual knowledge can correct me; I'm an armchair historical dress appreciator and cosplayer 😅
Indeed, you are correct. The mantua and other flat-cut gowns of the late 17th/early 18th centuries were the ancestors of most (if not all) women's gowns of the later 18th century. About to spend a day teaching their importance at Wimbledon College of Arts.
Many, *many* years ago there was a touring gallery that came through our local museum that was all about fashion & art & how they intertwine. Not just avant garde stuff either, but various traditional garbs & things like interplay of natural dyes & fabrics & sewing/embroidery advancements, etc.
This was also one of those “aha!” moments for me, when I finally *got* that clothes were hellaciously expensive throughout most of history & for most people, the idea of having more than 2 shirts at the same time was a luxury beyond compare.
Before that, it hadn’t clicked exactly how much time & effort went into making even the simplest garment, from growing/herding the fibers all the way to tailoring the garment.
Also kinda pissed me off to find that ancient clothes were largely *better quality* than what we have now…
…because there were so many steps where a human mind could catch a problem & fix it, as opposed to the automated & sweatshop systems we have now. And clothes actually fucking FIT, because they were made to your measurements, not a one-size-fits-all!
Like, we have garments that are from the last Ice Age that are still somewhat intact! Can you even *imagine* that any mass market garment today will last even 25 years without starting to decay, much less centuries or millennia? I certainly can’t.
What’s the relationship between the two dresses, I wonder. The disassembled one seems to be historical. Is the one on the mannequin what it is imagined to have possibly looked like, with the addition of a few missing pieces? Lovely presentation.
Hi Bruce, my wife teaches this costume construction course in Aotearoa New Zealand. People travel from all over the world to be taught by her. I hope you find it interesting and can share.
you can see more of the costumes from the movie at Coppola's winery in Geyserville, CA (there's stuff from several of his movies, and the ships from Marie Antoinette, and a bunch of Oscars, too). It's one of our favorite places to bring out of town guests.
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(or are they the same thing? Never can keep those straight.)
I'm still intrigued by that feature at the top of the skirt.
I'd love to know more about where this photo is from.
I see the artwork in the picture - so perhaps that is a clue.
Fashion is so fascinating and so reflective of, well, EVERYTHING going on.
Bit of a commute. :-)
https://katedolan.com/arsenic-in-old-lace-the-deadly-fashion-trend-that-attacked-people-where-they-lived/
~Carol Burnett as Starlett
I mean, in a good way, this really does justify the whole curtain thing!
Also kinda pissed me off to find that ancient clothes were largely *better quality* than what we have now…
https://theschoolofhistoricaldress.org.uk/
I sew and build costumes.
Love places like this.
Years ago i went to an amazing museum that houses many costumes.
They had the cape and armor from Bram Stoker's Dracula, and i damn near tried to grab them both and run away....WAAANNNNTT
https://theartofcostume.com/2020/10/29/designing-fear-bram-stokers-dracula/
https://www.toiwhakaari.ac.nz/course/costume-construction
I went to see Camelot in 1967 and had an attack of Stendahl Syndrome.
I love when some of the mystery is taken out of a thing for the untrained eye.