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Ball dress, autumn 1837

14 of 32 portraits matching these criteria:

- subject matching 'Fashion Plates: Sleeves and cuffs - En bouffant; en sabot'

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Ball dress, autumn 1837

published in Le Follet, Courrier des Salons, Journal des Modes
hand-coloured etching, line and stipple engraving, published circa November 1837
8 3/8 in. x 5 7/8 in. (213 mm x 149 mm) paper size
Acquired, 1930
Reference Collection
NPG D47725

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Also published in The Lady's Magazine and Museum, December 1837, with a description:
Ball Dress - Dress of white tulle, with a double skirt, worn over white satin corsage uni and à-pointe, sleeves short, in plaits at top, the lower part in a small single sabot; the underneath skirt is ornamented with a very deep flounce of rich blonde, the outside one only reaches to the sides (see plate), where it is looped up, quite in the style of the ancient costumes; wreaths of small but richly variegated flowers form a heading to the flounce; a garniture of the same is upon the sleeves, and down the seams of the front of the corsage (see plate); a trimming, likewise of flowers, runs along each side of the second skirt, and terminates at the looping up of the same by a bouquet. Hair in thick ringlets, with a guirlande (wreath) of mixed flowers. Necklace and ear-rings of pearls, gold armlets placed immediately below the short sleeve (see plate). Half long kid gloves, with ruches of satin ribbon at top; white shoes; antique fan. The dress of the sitting figure is of pink satin, the back hair twisted en torsade.
Child's Dress - Frock and trowsers of white pou de soie, the corsage plain, with crossed draperies put on (see plate). Short tight sleeves, finished with ruches of tulle; coloured sash; bows on the sleeves and in the hair.

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Current affairs

The controversial monarch William IV dies of pneumonia in June leaving no legitimate heirs, and is succeeded to the throne by his niece Victoria, one month after her eighteenth birthday.
The Registration Act of Births, Marriages and Deaths makes it compulsory for all births, marriages and deaths to be registered at a Registry Office.

Art and science

Dickens's second novel Oliver Twist is serialised in Bentley's Magazine. The story of the orphan Oliver is an attack on the Poor Law Amendment Acts (1834), a highly contentious piece of legislation which abolished outdoor relief, effectively increasing entry in the workhouse. The novel, famously made into a musical in 1968, marks Dickens as an outspoken social critic as well as a highly popular and commercial writer.

International

The Russian poet Aleksandr Pushkin is killed in a duel with Baron Georges d'Anthès. Considered the founder of modern Russian literature, Pushkin blended Old Slavonic with vernacular Russian and was the first Russian writer to use everyday speech in his poetry. His works include Eugene Onegin.

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