A rather old dress.

This Sliver Tissue dress is the oldest dress in the Museums collection. Dating from around 1660 it's remarkable that it's the near perfect condition that it is. Due to how small the dress is it's thought that it could've belonged to a girl or a very young women but it defiantly would've only been worn to very grand occasions for example attending the Royal Court in the time of King Charles II.

Due to it's era of time it makes me think that this dress mostly compares to those of Sleeping Beauty, with fine detail and workmanship that from a distance can't be seen but can be admired when taking a second look closer up.

The fabrics made out of fine silk woven with silver thread and decorated with parchment lace which was encased down onto the fabric and sewn on most likely using a couching method.

It seems impossible to think that this fine type of embroidery was done all by hand in a time before machines, along with being done by candlelight most likely as well.The fact that this bordering pattern not only goes along the hem but up the front of the skirt also then repeated to go back down to the border,  I admire the dressmakers patience.