DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.22262#0081
The First Empire wedding dress. A study of two gowns from the collections of the National Museums
delicate fabric (Fig. 3). The embroidery
motifs are the same on both: oaken
twigs with leaves and acorns. The Cra-
cow dress additionally features rose
sprigs alternating with the oak twigs.
The two embroideries' identical tech-
niąues and motifs (similarly compound
and proportioned) may imply both
dresses were decorated by the same em-
broiderer. They might even have been
made at the same tailor's shop, though
this is uncertain as the embroideries
seem older than the dresses. This can be
inferred from the embroidered elements
near the side seams of the Warsaw dress,
which do not fit perfectly together.
In both dresses the ornament has an in-
verted 'T' shape made up of two em-
broidered bands, one vertical on the
front of the skirt and the other running
along the bottom hem of the dress. It is
therefore legitimate to date the two
dresses to some time after 1804, when -
inspired by the figures from the Bayeux
Tapestry (on view in Paris then7) - this
called the Mathilde.
Fig. 3
Embroidery of satin stitch and French knots
in thick cotton thread on the Warsaw wed-
ding gown; photo by Piotr Ligier
pattern became widely popular and was
However, the embroidery on these two dresses is not mere decoration. The motifs
are indicative of the marital status, not an unusual thing in history, especially in
Baroąue.
The use of symbols was very common in contemporary arts and literaturę and in-
evitably affected costume as well, including wedding dress. Symbols were not lim-
ited to white signifying the bride's innocence. The key vehicles of symbolical mean-
ings were embroidery, laces patterns and jewellery. Derived from emblem books, the
motifs of these ornaments stood for particular traits of an ideał bride or married
woman, and, more universally, of matrimony. Many of them, especially those relat-
ing to emotions, were already firmly rooted in European culture and even today are
unambiguous to the beholder (hearts in flames or shot with arrows, cupids, kissing
doves, dogs, roses etc.)
7 Boucher, E, A History of Costume in the West, London, 1988, p. 346.
79
delicate fabric (Fig. 3). The embroidery
motifs are the same on both: oaken
twigs with leaves and acorns. The Cra-
cow dress additionally features rose
sprigs alternating with the oak twigs.
The two embroideries' identical tech-
niąues and motifs (similarly compound
and proportioned) may imply both
dresses were decorated by the same em-
broiderer. They might even have been
made at the same tailor's shop, though
this is uncertain as the embroideries
seem older than the dresses. This can be
inferred from the embroidered elements
near the side seams of the Warsaw dress,
which do not fit perfectly together.
In both dresses the ornament has an in-
verted 'T' shape made up of two em-
broidered bands, one vertical on the
front of the skirt and the other running
along the bottom hem of the dress. It is
therefore legitimate to date the two
dresses to some time after 1804, when -
inspired by the figures from the Bayeux
Tapestry (on view in Paris then7) - this
called the Mathilde.
Fig. 3
Embroidery of satin stitch and French knots
in thick cotton thread on the Warsaw wed-
ding gown; photo by Piotr Ligier
pattern became widely popular and was
However, the embroidery on these two dresses is not mere decoration. The motifs
are indicative of the marital status, not an unusual thing in history, especially in
Baroąue.
The use of symbols was very common in contemporary arts and literaturę and in-
evitably affected costume as well, including wedding dress. Symbols were not lim-
ited to white signifying the bride's innocence. The key vehicles of symbolical mean-
ings were embroidery, laces patterns and jewellery. Derived from emblem books, the
motifs of these ornaments stood for particular traits of an ideał bride or married
woman, and, more universally, of matrimony. Many of them, especially those relat-
ing to emotions, were already firmly rooted in European culture and even today are
unambiguous to the beholder (hearts in flames or shot with arrows, cupids, kissing
doves, dogs, roses etc.)
7 Boucher, E, A History of Costume in the West, London, 1988, p. 346.
79