Mantua
The draped silk gown that replaced the stiff bodice around 1680, its train looped up at the back.
The mantua became a trade: mantua-makers were among the first women to run their own dressmaking businesses. The grandest were worn at court well into the 18th century. A famous example is in the Metropolitan Museum and others are in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Materials: Patterned silk, embroidery
Manufacture: A single length of silk pleated and fitted to the body, so the pattern of the silk was not cut up.
The train folded up and fixed at the back, showing the lining.
The cloth in whole widths, with pleats instead of cut pieces.