Princess Deokhye’s Jacket with Sash for First Birthday Celebration

This jacket with sash for the first birthday celebration is one of the clothing artifacts from the royal Joseon household left behind after Princess Deokhye, daughter of Emperor Gojong, stayed in Japan. The Bunka Gakuen Costume Museum in Tokyo, Japan re-donated this jacket to the National Palace Museum of Korea in 2015 after it had been given to the Costume Museum by Imperial Prince Yeong and his consort. This is a baby’s jacket with narrow sleeves, relatively short in length, with a long coat string. The long coat string is called doltti or “sash for the first birthday coat,” which was to be wrapped around the jacket and tied in the front. With a light green sash attached, the jacket is made of dark pink habutae, thin, fine silk for the outer fabric and white cotton for the inner lining. This is a new jacket with no sign of wear.