Robe

The sleeves of this robe, which is said to be part of a wedding outfit, are only seamed from the underarm to the elbow, from where they would hang, dangling to reveal the lining of blue silk embroidered with floral sprays and pink sequins.

Despite large amounts of metal thread used to decorate the red woollen ground, most of the glitter comes from applied sequins. The metal strip used in the embroidery was not closely wound around its yellow silk core and much of it has come away. The rows of metal braid, cords and fancy edgings are decorative but also add weight to the end of the sleeve ensuring that it hangs well. A thin layer of woollen fibres has been used throughout the garment as padding between the embroidered wool and its lining; lines of running stitch, keeping the padding in place, can be seen on the lining.