Jacket associated with Marian Anderson's 1939 Lincoln Memorial concert: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

An orange tailored silk shantung top decorated with beads and sequins worn by Marian Anderson at her Lincoln Memorial Concert in 1939. The jacket's silk material is iridescent with yellow undertones. Down the front of the jacket are 10 covered buttons. The buttons are detailed with gold sequins surrounding turquoise beads and the sleeves are puffed out below the elbow and tapered and tight at the cuff. The edging at the collar, bottom of the jacket, shoulders, outside arms, and cuffs is detailed trim with geometric patterning featuring sequins and small tourquoise beads.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1939; modified 1993
• Designed by: Unidentified
• Worn by: Marian Anderson, American, 1897 - 1993
• Type: jackets
• Medium: silk, metal, thread, sequin
• Dimensions: Form: 26 x 23 x 19 in. (66 x 58.4 x 48.3 cm)
• Dimensions: L x W (Flat with sleeves): 26 x 15 3/4 in. (66 x 40 cm)
• Dimensions: L x W (Flat without sleeves): 22 1/2 x 15 3/4 in. (57.2 x 40 cm)
• Place used: Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Topic: Classical (Music)
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Fashion
• Topic: Local and regional
• Object number: 2014.27.2.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Ginette DePreist in memory of James DePreist
• 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: No Known Copyright Restrictions Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.