Title
Baby coattee
Year/Period
1925
Region
Singapore
Material
Dimension
Gross measurement: 35 x 48 cm
Accession No.
2010-01301
Collection of
Credit Line
Gift of Chan Pheng Looi
This brown baby’s coattee is knitted from wool. This material was popular in European fashion in the 20th century and it became popular with the Nonyas at around the same time. Being an imported material, wool was not very affordable. The access to and preference for wool among the Peranakan community serves as evidence of rising trade and influence of the Europeans in the lifestyle and culture of wealthy and affluent Peranakans. This group interacted greatly with the West and Western Europeans increasingly travelled to Southeast Asia for trade and commerce. More affluent Peranakan households were therefore more susceptible to increasingly westernised lifestyles, ideas and practises.
