Mrs. Whitney's
Fortuny Dress
Mariano
Fortuny first designed his ethereal pleated silk dress in
1907. He created a number of variations of this dress, the
most well known being the sleeveless Delphos. Mrs. Whitney
chose to order the Peplos style, far more rare than the
Delphos.
I have been
selling Fortuny dresses for almost 30 years and I have had
the Delphos in almost every color. I have also been lucky
enough to find stenciled velvet jackets and coats, as well
as the elusive gauze pieces. This is the first Peplos dress
that I have ever had the pleasure to own and offer for
sale. Silvery-green silk, pleated as only Fortuny could
using his secret pleating formula, creates a luminescent
gown fit for a Goddess.
These gowns
were a staple in a high society wardrobe from the 1920's
through 1947 when production stopped. They were the early
20th century equivalent of an Hermes Kelly or Birkin bag, a
highly sought after symbol of status and luxury. Several
years ago I was able to acquire two Fortuny dresses from the
estate of Mrs. E.F.Hutton. Their popularity did not stop in
1947, now worn by modern day actresses and socialites, these
women are helping to perpetuate the popularity of this
ultra-feminine dress.
Almost all
of the Museums of Costume throughout the world have a
Fortuny pleated gown in their collections.
The Peplos
is created by adding a tunic attached at the neckline to the
long sleeveless underdress. There are handkerchief points at
either hip. The sides of the dress are held in place by
golden Venetian glass beads striated with navy, red and
white. These beads are threaded through a cord at the
shoulders and at the hemline of the tunic. The wide silk
belt is stenciled in metallic gold, and signed on the
back. The dress is signed with a silk label under the left
arm.
The
condition of the dress is near perfect. There is one missing
Venetian glass bead on the bottom left side of the tunic,
and there is a minor loosening of the pleats at the back of
the right knee, both of these are photographed. Otherwise
the pleats are tight and the beads are in place on this
stunning dress. The dress retains the original box with the
name and address of Ms. Whitney.
Measurements;
