Reconstructing Jane Austen’s Silk Pelisse, 1812–1814

Abstract

This article explores the physical qualities and historical contexts of the silk pelisse coat dated c. 1812–1814 associated with Jane Austen (1775–1817) through family provenance and now held by Hampshire County Museum Services and Archives. The author took an exact pattern of the pelisse (included), then made replica garments. The association with Jane Austen is considered using evidence from Austen’s letters about her tastes in colours, length of fabrics needed for clothing, and ownership of a silk pelisse. The silk’s oak-leaf pattern is interpreted as a British patriotic motif, especially during the period of Napoleonic conflicts. Questions and insights arising from the process of reproduction are discussed, and the pelisse is compared to other surviving garments, and to contemporary fashionable images. As evidence suggests the pelisse probably did belong to Austen, her physical characteristics that can be gleaned from the garment are compared with information about Austen’s appearance.

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