Historia

Ball Gown

c. 1894

Designer:
Charles-Frederick Worth
Brand:
Worth
Label:
PARIS C. WORTH PARIS
Material:
Yellow silk brocade with tassel pattern; two-piece dress with gigot sleeves; silk taffeta bow at breast; silk chiffon decoration at hem of skirt.

Large sleeve characterize this dress. From around 1890, sleeves began swelling to such sizes that one may say it was the return of gigot sleeves. These large sleeves were called "elephant sleeves," and they reached their maximum size around 1895. Thirteen bones line this piece's bodice. Though presently missing, there is a trace where the chiffon decoration has adhered in the upper part of the front skirt, it seems this glamorous dress was appropriate for a ball gown of the upper class who were customer of the House of Worth.