Suit
Date1805-1815
OriginAmerica or England
MediumWool; linen; cotton; silk
DimensionsCoat chest 46"
Waistcoat OL 31"; waist 42"
Breeches OL 33"; waist 38"; inseam 18 1/2"
Credit LineMuseum Purchase, The Friends of Colonial Williamsburg Collections Fund
Object number2016-79,A-C
DescriptionMan’s three-piece suit of undecorated black wool broadcloth. A. Coat has 2 ¼-inch standing collar and front buttoned opening with nine one-inch diameter fabric-covered buttons. Coat front is sharply angled to curve away from chest. Fitted sleeves are shaped to curve over the elbows, ending in 4 ½-inch cuffs. Shaped pocket flaps cover functional pockets, decorated with three buttons under each flap. Coat has pleats at either side and a center-back vent. Quilted padding in upper chest and shoulders. Coat lined with black twill silk and interlined with natural and black buckram.
B. Sleeveless waistcoat of black broadcloth to match suit coat and breeches. Waistcoat has standing collar and center-front buttoned opening with twelve half-inch buttons. Functional pockets covered by shaped pocket flaps and trimmed with three buttons under each flap. Backing of black wool twill with two pairs of wool twill tape ties for adjusting fit. Lining of black twill silk and white plain-woven cotton.
C. Knee breeches of black broadcloth to match suit coat and waistcoat. Breeches have wide waistband with fob pocket and are fastened with 4 buttons at center front; back vent. Suspender buttons stitched to waistband. The fall front flap is buttoned to the waistband. Two functional pockets are accessed from the sides under buttoned flaps. Breeches end below knees with narrow knee band and buttons at the side of the legs. Dorset buttons are stitched to the interior for fastening a removable lining or “drawers”.
Label TextA three-piece black wool suit is a rare survival from the early years of the nineteenth century. Although the suit has no known history of ownership, it is an important study document illuminating a transitional period in men’s suiting. The overall silhouette and construction of the suit are conservative in nature, recalling men’s suits of the eighteenth century. Nevertheless, newly fashionable features have been added that point to a date early in the nineteenth century. Quilted and padded linings in the upper chest and shoulders, new features in menswear, gave more prominence to the upper body and filled in the hollow of the chest. Also new is the way in which the back shoulder seams were cut to angle sharply downward from the rear collar.
The knee-length breeches still retain a series of buttons stitched to the inside of the waistband that served a functional purpose: to hold in place a pair of removable linen drawers, or breeches liners, a desirable feature in unlined breeches made of scratchy and difficult-to-clean wool.
ProvenanceAcquired from New York dealers Ginsburg & Levy.
