Vest

In the pictureOf the two vests in the same photo, this entry presents the one on the right, on the mannequin with a brass knob. It hangs open, so the front edges lined with white curly fleece fold back wide on both sides, and on the yellow leather panels beyond them, magenta teardrops and yellow circular motifs are cut out and applied. Knots of twisted red cord run down along the front edges and end in large pinecone-shaped tassels. At the pocket positions near the bottom, horizontal lines stitched in green and yellow thread are packed closely together. Inside the vest, the black body of the mannequin shows plainly. The hem is also finished with white fleece.

BackgroundAccording to the record, the materials are leather and wool, the date is the late 19th century, and it is classified as children's clothing. At 48.3 cm long at the back, it is longer than the other vest in the same photo (2009.300.610, 38.1 cm), so it may have belonged to a child of a different age. Both vests came from the Brooklyn Museum expedition of 1920–21, and the photo's file name lists two Brooklyn accession numbers together. However, the record does not indicate which vest in the photo is this entry. Together with a long vest of 1840–70 (2009.300.53) from the same expedition, it is one of the few children's garments on this site.

Puzzle tipUnlike the entry for the left vest, which uses the same photo, this time start with the vest on the right. The magenta teardrops on the yellow leather panels and the two pinecone-shaped tassels are the most eye-catching pieces. Set up the V-shaped outline with the folded-back white fleece collar, and fix the top center with the brass knob on the mannequin. Fit the left vest along its line of orange cord loops, and leave the black mannequin and the background for last. 100 pieces suits it.