Parasol

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This parasol would have been the ultimate fashion conceit because it is neither functional nor protective. It is the smallest parasol in the Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection, with a length of 22 3/4". The parasol is especially unusual because it is beaded, worked in the same manner as the beaded bags that were so prevalent in the nineteenth century. The collapsible handle, which allows the parasol to collapse to a length of 12 1/2", would allow the parasol to function more like a fan.

The Costume Institute

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Costume Institute's collection of more than thirty-three thousand objects represents seven centuries of fashionable dress and accessories for men, women, and children, from the fifteenth century to the present.

Metropolitan Museum of Art