Flower spray

A shimmering spray of feathers forms this decoration intended for a hat and exemplifies early concerns about the conservation of wildlife. From the 1880s to 1921, the most fashionable women's hats were decorated with the plumage of exotic birds. This spray is made of feathers from a Coppery-headed Emerald Hummingbird (Elvira cupreiceps), native to Costa Rica. Not only have individual feathers from this iridescent bird been used as 'leaves' on the spray, but the whole skin of the bird's head to form the 'blossom'. This would have required killing the hummingbird.

The Society for the Protection of Birds was formed in 1889 in protest at the killing of Britain's great-crested grebe for use in fashionable dress. By the early 20th century, the Society was campaigning against the use of more exotic birds in millinery. The first Anti-Plumage Bill was defeated in the House of Commons in 1908 and finally passed in 1921, preventing any further use of birds as fashionable decoration.