Petticoat

Dateca. 1790

OriginAsia, India (textile); worn in America, New York, Albany

MediumCotton, mordant painted and dyed; linen tabby tape at waistline.

DimensionsOL of petticoat: 38 1/2"; waist 26 1/2". Textile width 45 1/2"

Credit LineGift of Mrs. Cora Ginsburg

Object number1990-10,2

DescriptionWoman's petticoat, part of a two-piece ensemble, of cotton, mordant-painted and resist-dyed with reds and blue in a design of flowers, exotic animals, and birds. The full petticoat is pleated to a waistband of half-inch wide tabby linen tape with a center-front box pleat and pocket slit openings extending 9 1/4" down on both sides of the waist. The petticoat is fastened closed with the tape ties at each side at the pocket slits. A ruffle 7 3/4" wide extends around the hem of the petticoat.
Label TextAmerican customers with sufficient wealth prized cotton textiles painted and dyed in India for the export market. With their brilliant, colorfast hues and luxurious polished surface finish, Indian chintzes were the most expensive and desirable of the printed cottons. This petticoat is part of a two-piece dress that has a fitted jacket with ruffled peplum at the waist. The jacket is worn over a pleated petticoat with flounced hem. Informal jacket ensembles became increasingly fashionable in the 1780s and 1790s.
ProvenanceWorn by Anne Van Rensselaer of Croton/Albany area of New York. She was the daughter of Pierre and Joanna Van Cortlandt of Croton. She married Philip Van Rensselaer in 1787; he was the future mayor of Albany.