Garment bag used by Shirley Verrett: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The dark brown leather bag is rectangular in shape with rounded corners. There is a repeated Louis Vuitton “LV” logo in light brown with three types of floral symbols repeated as well. The bag is trimmed in another shade of brown. The rounded handle is the same color, and there are also two horizontal stripes along the top 1/3 of the front of the bag. In between the two scuffed stripes is a metal zipper. Above the stripes is an oval sewn on in the same shade of brown as the trim and handle. There is a torn red and white sticker on it which reads [?ST SECURITY / BAGGAGE]. There is a torn blue and white sticker on the handle reading [SECURITY / ICTS]. There is also a red grosgrain ribbon tied on to the handle. The handle has some scuffs and spots on it, and it is attached to the back with metal pieces. There are also two small metal circles on the top of the bag. There is an orange rectangle sticker on top of the back with black text that reads [350.00 EACH].

There is a metal zipper going around the proper right, top, and proper left sides of the bag. There are 3-D metal pieces on the bottom of the bag, which help it stand up. There is also a clear piece of tape stuck to the bottom. There is a silver key inside the bag. It has a cartoon face and a hat and bowtie. The back of the key has raised text which reads [AMERICAN / TOURISTER]. The inside of the bag is lined in a light taupe colored woven fabric with several stains and tears. There is a loose strap inside of the bag. It is a dark brown leather with gold colored metal attachments on it.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1960-2000
• Manufactured by: Louis Vuitton Malletier, French, founded 1854
• Owned by: Shirley Verrett, American, 1931 - 2010
• Type: garment bags
• Medium: leather, metal, linen, ribbon, adhesive, ink, and tape
• Dimensions: H x W x D: 16 3/4 × 19 × 3 1/2 in. (42.5 × 48.3 × 8.9 cm)
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Costume
• Topic: Fashion
• Topic: Opera (Music)
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Object number: A2019.88.1.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Francesca LoMonaco in memory of Shirley Verrett
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Louis Vuitton Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.