Woman's Dress (Open Robe à la française and Petticoat)

Currently not on view

Woman's Dress (Open Robe à la française and Petticoat)

Silk: 1760-1765; Dress: c. 1760-1765, with later alterations

Artist/maker unknown, American and French

This dress is believed to have been worn by Ann Willing Francis (1733-1812), wife of prominent lawyer and Federalist Tench Francis, Jr. (1730-1800) of Philadelphia, whom she married in 1762. Ann was the daughter of Charles Willing, a successful Philadelphia merchant who traded in textiles and other items, a founder of the University of Pennsylvania, and mayor of Philadelphia in 1748 and 1754. This dress was altered several times, including for fancy-dress occasions, during the late nineteenth or early twentieth century.

Currently not on view

Object Details

Title:

Woman's Dress (Open Robe à la française and Petticoat)

Date:

Silk: 1760-1765; Dress: c. 1760-1765, with later alterations

Artist:

Artist/maker unknown, American and French

Medium:

Silk tobine (cannelé) with brocading

Dimensions:

Center Back Length: 6 feet 1 inches (185.4 cm) Waist: 25 inches (63.5 cm)

Classification:

Costume (including accessories)

Credit Line:

Gift of Thomas Francis Cadwalader, 1955

Accession Number:

1955-98-6a,b

Geography:

Made in Lyon, France, Europe And made in United States, North and Central America

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Currently not on view