Images(6)

2009 Record shot by L. Baumgarten. Hat, chintz lining.

Hat

Date1780-1830, earlier lining

OriginEurope, Netherlands (possibly)

MediumStraw; mordant-painted-and-resist-dyed cotton chintz; silk binding; silk ribbons; sewing thread joining chintz to brim is linen (checked by microscope 11-3-09); sewing treads holding ribbons in place are probably silk (microscopic id indeterminate).

DimensionsDiameter 16 1/2"; crown ht 1/2"

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number2009-103

DescriptionWoman's golden color straw hat with very low crown and wide flat brim, lined in the crown and under the brim with mordant-painted-and-resist-dyed cotton (India chintz) in an abstract floral pattern that probably dates to the early eighteenth century. Although an early textile, the lining may be a later addition. The narrow green silk binding around the outer edge of brim is mostly hidden by the chintz lining. Four sets of later silk ribbons woven in floral pattern of green, yellow, and red, are roughly stitched to the inside of the crown. The ribbons are 2 1/4 and 1 1/4 inches wide.
Label TextFlat straw hats were fashionable women’s headwear in the 18th century in parts of Europe and England. In the case of this Dutch example, the underside of the hat brim was lined with scraps of an earlier India chintz, probably dating to the first half of the century.

The Dutch East India Company engaged in a thriving trade with India during the 17th and 18th centuries, and colorful chintz cottons in a wide array of patterns were readily available .