Shirt
This shirt was created, from the linen fiber to the finished garment, by the donor's great-grandmother, Elizabeth Wild Hitchings, for her husband Benjamin Hitchings, a sea captain, in 1816. It was common practice for a wife or servant to hand stitch family members' shirts prior to the mid-19th century, but rarely was such handiwork recorded, making this case rare and intriguing. In addition, its elegant stitching makes it a perfect example of the familial care taken in sewing prior to the common possession and use of the sewing machine.
Artwork Details
- Title: Shirt
- Designer: Elizabeth Wild Hitchings
- Date: 1816–17
- Culture: American
- Medium: linen
- Credit Line: Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Mrs. Benjamin Hitchings, 1944
- Object Number: 2009.300.1123
- Curatorial Department: The Costume Institute
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