Three Costume Sketches of a Bonnet, a Cloak, and a Hat

Three Costume Sketches of a Bonnet, a Cloak, and a Hat

Anonymous, French, 18th century

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Page with three costume sketches of a bonnet, a cloak, and a hat. At left is a graphite and gouache sketch of an 'American' bonnet with a ribbon attached at the front. In the center is a graphite sketch of a hooded cloak. At far right is a graphite sketch of a bonnet with a floral motif along the side and a bow in the back. The face of the woman wearing the bonnet appears to have been obscured by a veil.

Drawings and Prints

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Three Costume Sketches of a Bonnet, a Cloak, and a HatThree Costume Sketches of a Bonnet, a Cloak, and a HatThree Costume Sketches of a Bonnet, a Cloak, and a HatThree Costume Sketches of a Bonnet, a Cloak, and a HatThree Costume Sketches of a Bonnet, a Cloak, and a Hat

The Department’s vast collection of works on paper comprises approximately 21,000 drawings, 1.2 million prints, and 12,000 illustrated books created in Europe and the Americas from about 1400 to the present day. Since its foundation in 1916, the Department has been committed to collecting a wide range of works on paper, which includes both pieces that are incredibly rare and lauded for their aesthetic appeal, as well as material that is more popular, functional, and ephemeral. The broad scope of the department’s collecting encourages questions of connoisseurship as well as those pertaining to function and context, and demonstrates the vital role that prints, drawings, and illustrated books have played throughout history.