Corsets

Left: Corset / France, c.1876 / Satin, whalebone, metal, lace / Lent by the Brooklyn Museum of Art
Extremely elegant and luxurious corsets were a specialty of the French. Made of white satin brocaded with pink roses, this corset has a 21-inch waist.

Center back:Wedding Corset / Thompson’s Glove-Fitting / England, 1880s / Silk floral jacquard with satin ground, embroidered silk organza lace, whalebone, metal / Lent by the Brooklyn Museum of Art
A wedding trousseau usually included a nuptial corset. The young bride who wore this corset measured 20 inches around the waist, when and if her corset was laced completely closed.

Center front: Corset / Probably France, 1880s / Silk satin, lace, whalebone, metal / Lent by The Museum of the City of New York
According to La Vie Parisienne (1881), the proper and virtuous married woman always wore “a white satin corset, never a colored corset.” White satin is praised as “the king of corsets! Flexible, shimmering, soft against the body that it delineates without squeezing.” This corset has cross-boning which helps to shape the breasts and measures 30-20-31 inches.

Near right: Corset / Probably USA, c. 1870 / Cotton sateen, whalebone, metal / Lent by The Museum of the City of New York
By the second half of the 19th century, most corsets hooked in front, permitting a woman to dress without assistance. The typical corset of the 1860s and early 1870s was relatively short-waisted. The corset’s role in supporting the breasts is evident. The bust-hip-waist measurements of this corset are about 30-23-31 inches.

Right: Wedding corset / c.1866 / Silk / Lent by Museum of the City of New York
This corset measures 32-18-25 inches. This is the smallest waist in the exhibition, but the hips are equally petite.