Embroidered apron made by an unidentified enslaved seamstress
date: label: Date
content: 1828-1850
name: label: Owned by
content: Old Slave Mart Museum, American, founded 1937
notes: label: Description
content: Apron made by an enslaved person.
label: Description
content: The apron is off white and is starting to discolor from old age. The top of the apron extends out into a thin strap on either side. The straps are meant to be tied in the back. The bottom of the apron has scalloped edges with even smaller scallops along the curves. There is a design that starts at the top of the apron and expands row by row. There is a bunch of grapes made out of negative space as well as embroidered shapes. There are thirteen (13) holes in the apron that make up the grapes. There are two (2) bunches in the second row, followed by three, four, five, six, and nine. There are flower designs in between each of the bunches of grapes. Above and below each bunchthere is a curved leaf design and embroidered vines. There are dots along the scalloped edges at the bottom.
label: Description
content: There are several holes and stains on the apron. There are some loose threads at the top. There are two cotton tags sewn onto the apron. There is handwriting in black ink. The short tag on top reads [R388]. The longer tag below it reads [SLAVE-MADE X-1-120 MBW. There are a few areas where the black ink bled through the fabric.
place: label: Place made
content: United States, North and Central America
label: Place collected
content: Charleston, South Carolina, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Clothing and dress
label: Topic
content: Craftsmanship
label: Topic
content: Domestic life
label: Topic
content: Skilled labor
label: Topic
content: Slavery
label: Topic
content: U.S. History, 1815-1861
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Slavery and Freedom Objects
label: Classification
content: Clothing - Fashion and Historical
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2017.108.17.1
objectType: label: Type
content: aprons (main garments)
label: Type
content: whitework
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: cotton
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 31 3/4 × 32 1/4 in. (80.6 × 81.9 cm)