Jacket

Title
Jacket
Year/Period
early 20th century
Region
Indonesia - Java
Dimension
Gross measurement: 69.3 x 87.0 cm
Accession No.
2017-01081
Collection of

This black wool jacket contains a heavy metallic trim of trellises around its cuffs, collar, and hems. Its tailoring is reminiscent of a European military jacket. European clothing was initially restricted to European people when the Dutch first landed in the Indonesian archipelago, and became a symbol of status. In later centuries, similar jackets were worn by Indonesian elites during the 19th and 20th centuries as a form of power dressing and modernity. This piece is part of a set of Javanese aristocratic dress, and includes a dodot, patola trousers, a cotton belt, and hats; it is representative of cross-cultural Javanese court dressing in the 20th century.