Long Purse

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Long Purse

c. 1870-1880

Artist/maker unknown, American

Miser’s purses were made in a wide range of colors, with red, blue, and green being the most common. Green was a popular color for men, and green purses often appeared in the period’s literary works as gifts from female love interests. In William Makepeace Thackeray’s novel Vanity Fair (1847–48), the orphaned Becky Sharp presents one as a token of affection to the affluent Joseph Sedley, with the hope that the young man will marry her. In the second half of the nineteenth century, purses in saturated pink-purple hues were fashionable after the discovery of mauveine, the first aniline (synthetic organic) dye by chemist William Henry Perkins in 1856.

Currently not on view

Object Details

Title:

Long Purse

Date:

c. 1870-1880

Artist:

Artist/maker unknown, American

Medium:

Crocheted silk; steel beads and rings

Dimensions:

11 3/4 × 2 3/4 inches (29.8 × 7 cm)

Classification:

Costume (including accessories)

Credit Line:

Gift of Mrs. Hampton L. Carson, 1930

Accession Number:

1930-30-2

Geography:

Made in United States, North and Central America

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