Wool Cape, circa 1897
Donated by Charlotte Troxel Lindar

This elaborately designed garment is typical of late 19th-century clothing worn by women of the upper class. Such women decorated everything, creating a style that seemed to say, "more is more." Costly fabrics, embroidery, applique, beadwork, and trims of all types, including feathers and furs, were common, even on the same article of clothing.

The "perfect woman" of the 1890s was herself a decorative and delicate article in the home. This ideal led to clothing styles with increasingly higher collars, tighter corsets, more restrictive sleeves and yards of lace and flounces, all in place to prevent exertion by the lovely creature on the pedestal.