Child's silk sun hat
Date1890s
Object number00018350
NameHat
MediumSilk
DimensionsOverall: 480 x 400 x 400 x 400 mm, 0.05 kg
ClassificationsClothing and personal items
Credit LineANMM Collection
DescriptionThis child's sun hat was worn in the late nineteenth century. Made of ivory coloured silk, it has a wide brim and bouffant crown. The brim features circles of ribbing on the underside to create stiffness and has a narrow chin strap attached to one side. The crown has a smaller brim, which creates a tiered effect and is decorated with pin tucking and lace embellishment.
HistoryBy the early 1900s a thriving tourist industry had become well established around the seaside towns of Australia. The beach had become a place for rest and recreation. Men, women and children took up the fashionable pursuit of promenading along the seashore.
Wearing the 'uniform' of a white sundress, decorated and accessorised with hats and pinafores, usually white, to protect precious clothes and complexions from the harsh Australian climate, girls enjoyed playing beside the sea.
White, cream, or ivory dresses were seen as a symbol of wealth during the Edwardian era. Wearing white or cream-coloured clothing meant you either had a maid at home or you could afford to pay another to wash your clothes.
SignificanceThis is a rare surviving example of a late Victorian or early Edwardian child's sun hat.
1900 - 1920
1890 - 1901
late 19th Century
late 19th-early 20th Century
