Jane Austen’s Wardrobe
Publishing 12th September 2023, with Yale University Press
Hilary Davidson delves into the clothing of one of the world’s great authors, providing unique and intimate insight into her everyday life and material world
“The definitive compendium of Jane Austen’s clothes, recreated from fragments, by an acknowledged mistress of the field. Open the book, the author invites, as you might a chest of drawers, to find anything but a dowdy spinster.”
What did Jane Austen wear?
Acclaimed dress historian and Austen expert Hilary Davidson reveals, for the first time, the wardrobe of one of the world’s most celebrated authors. Despite her acknowledged brilliance on the page, Jane Austen has all too often been accused of dowdiness in her appearance. Drawing on Austen’s 161 known letters, as well as her own surviving garments and accessories, this book assembles examples of the variety of clothes she would have possessed—from gowns and coats to shoes and undergarments—to tell a very different story. The Jane Austen Hilary Davidson discovers is alert to fashion trends but thrifty and eager to reuse and repurpose clothing. Her renowned irony and wit peppers her letters, describing clothes, shopping, and taste. Jane Austen’s Wardrobe offers the rare pleasure of a glimpse inside the closet of a stylish dresser and perpetually fascinating writer.
The collar of Jane Austen’s silk pelisse, 1812-14. (C) Hampshire Cultural Trust
Jane Austen’s turquoise ring. Courtesy of Jane Austen’s House.
Yellow silk gauze and ribbon gown, c. 1810. Courtesy the Hopkins Collection.
“An intriguing and wholly original approach to Jane Austen. . . . A most delightful book and a must for every Austen reader.”
“This gorgeously illustrated volume from the world’s leading expert on the fashion of the Regency era lifts the skirts on Jane Austen’s wardrobe.”
“Hugely enjoyable, charmingly illustrated and beautifully produced, a book to linger over and which, moreover, sheds light on just how seriously Jane Austen took fashion.”