• Watercolour landscape showing a coastline with building and mine shafts dotted along the shore. In the background there are fields leading to hills.

A woman stands in a period-style ball gown, with accentuated white sleeves in the middle of a grand hall

The discovery of the farthingale sleeve

by Ninya Mikhaila The discovery of rare, or unknown items of historic dress is always exciting. It can also be challenging when the extant object offers evidence which contradicts previously held beliefs about people in the past. A farthingale sleeve…