An incredible sensation: a feather palatine, ca. 1828. Origin: England. On the front are exotic feathers, on the back fluffy feathers have been sewn individually - and by hand - on a woven fabric base. An incredible piece of work. Similar stoles can be found in the world's great fashion museums - and only there: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Collection (1983,157,2a), the Museum of Fine arts Boston (46,703), and the Kyoto Costume Institute (AC5646 87-27-1). Very well preserved. Very subtle signs of age and wear. Extremely rare to find. A museum piece and a sensational find.
Palatines of this type had become very popular in England after 1824. In 1824, the young king of Hawaii, Kamehameha II, set off for London. He wanted to visit King George IV there. His wife and ladies in his entourage were adorned with such feather stoles. This colorfulness and exoticism to the ladies in London delighted. In 1824, the Hawaiian king and his wife tragically died of measles in London. What remained was this blaze of color made of feathers. Only a few stoles from this period have survived. There is a similar stole in the FIDM Museum in Los Angeles.
Length: ~ 105 cm