Stays
Date1760-1775
OriginEngland
MediumSilk (fabric remnants); linen (lining); baleen (boning)
DimensionsWidth: 24" Waist: 20 3/4"; Chest: 23" Length: 10"
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1994-28
DescriptionBoned bodice lining for a child's back-laced court or formal gown, orignally covered with blue ribbed silk (largely missing). Cream plain-woven linen is stitched and boned in channels. Rear eyelets for lacing. Marked in ink on inside, PE(?) in script.Construction History:
1. 1760-1775: Initial Construction
2. the bodice was cut down at a later date, and it is possible that waist tabs were removed at that time.
MarkingsPE in ink.
ProvenanceProvenance listed in auction catalog, Christie's 16 November, 1993, states: "These were reputedly the property of Miss Anna Maria Dacres, later Mrs. Adams, Dresser and later wet nurse to the daughters of George III. These corsets are so finely made that it seems most probable they were made for one of the princesses. The unifinished corset (2) is inscribed four times PE."
