Alison Sofield, Volunteer Collections
Hat boxes are objects from the past, common in the 18th century and in use in well into the 20th century. Considered an essential item for both ladies and gentlemen for the storage of hats either at home or while travelling.
In Victorian Britain fashionable clothes required careful maintenance and a range of accessories were invented to help keep them in good condition. The popularity of wearing hats made it necessary to develop hat boxes to assist with storage and such boxes kept the items free from dust.
These boxes were made in different materials, leather being the most valuable but also fibre, cardboard or metal. Their usual shape was circular, however certain kinds of hats needed a hat box that followed the shape. Think of Napoleon’s hat, a three cornered or triangular shape would have required a hat box of similar dimensions.
However even more importantly, hat boxes in addition to their practical use, became a symbol of taste and refinement.
The spread of hat boxes was greatest during the nineteenth century, in particular in association with “Grand Tours” trips made by the aristocracy to discover the art and history of Europe.
Some hat boxes included a space for a brush. Hat brushes were often used for advertising by hatters and were given away with new hats. These brushes were used to make silk top hats shine.
Metal hat boxes usually indicated their owners were in the military and thus required sturdier boxes for the rigors of the battlefield.
The Museum holds a number of different styles of hat boxes. The example shown here has an interesting label inside the lid. It reads “Clarkes Leather Depot. For travelling goods – Boot trade and sundries etc.” High Street, Dannevirke. Does this mean this particular hat box was made in Dannevirke or it was imported and labelled on arrival in New Zealand?
This hat box has a silk floral lining in red and blue patterns. The body of the box is composition board processed to look like leather with leatherette binding strengthening the seams and edges. There are signs that there have been numerous travel labels on the box indicating wide use by the owner, though sadly they have been carefully removed somewhere along the line. One wonders why?
There are two pockets inside, one in the lid and one on the body of the box. Perhaps they held a hat brush.
On the outside are two sturdy lockable metal clasps and a leather handle.
It is probably designed for use by a lady given it would not be tall enough for say a top hat.
When collapsible top hats were invented by a Frenchman around 1850 the need for tall hat boxes declined, although ladies hat fashion fluctuated between the large and the very small, thus, requiring hat boxes of various sizes.
Given today’s air travel restrictions as to the size and weight of travel luggage it would seem that the day of the hat box is over. Sad though because it is a glamourous and luxurious item to add to one’s travel experience.
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