Object of the Day, Museum Edition: An Antique Wedding Wreath, 1854

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The Victoria & Albert Museum

This wreath of orange blossom—designed to be worn as a crown by a bride--is completely made from white feathers which have been dyed green and/or tinted, and mounted on a coil of silk-thread wrapped wire and accented with silk ribbons.

For such a wedding wreath to survive from 1854 is quite rare. Few examples of these mid-Nineteenth-Century wreaths were sturdy enough to last this long. Very often, these wreaths were preserved on “Memory Chairs,” for several generations. But, more often than not, the wreath would disintegrate, leaving the chair empty.

That this wreath has been made from feathers is also quite unusual. Imitation blossom was normally made from wax, paper, or cloth. Such a wreath would have been costlier. However, since this one has survived because of its medium, the expense was well worth it.

This headpiece is associated with the 1854 marriage of Elizabeth Wroughton Richards to Edward Nugée.