Title
Suit
Year/Period
1940s
Region
Java, Indonesa
Object Type
Material
Technique
Dimension
Object size: Refer to parts
Accession No.
2018-01280
Collection of
This suit comprises a single-breasted jacket with two buttons, and a pair of trousers cut from the same dark fabric. Lounge suits were accepted as appropriate business attire for men in Europe in the early 20th century. In the Dutch East Indies, suits were worn by officials of the colonial government as well as members of the business community, which probably accounts for its associations with authority, commerce and modernity. This suit was tailored for Phay Kiat Gien in the 1940s, according to his great-grandson. He was born in Guangzhou in 1896 and travelled to Indonesia in 1916. The label remains intact and shows “Tailor Liem Giok Kwie, Tegal”.
