Ensemble
c. 1888
Wool
Museum purchase
Object numberP88.63.1
During the late nineteenth century, women bicyclists wore bloomers or divided skirts, which many found shocking. They were not accepted outside of the sportswear context, and The New York Times warned that divided skirts were “merely a resting-place on the road to trousers.” In Paris, bicycling costumes were a fashionable fad, but women risked arrest if caught wearing them while not in the presence of a bicycle.
Descriptionbicycle riding jacket: black wool; notched collar; fitted, princess back with tail vent; two piece long sleeve with two button vent cuff; seven button center front closing. Matching chest warmer; band collar with two hook closing; three button center front closing. Matching pants: wide flared legs; button fly closing.Collections
Exhibitions