Tie from the travel wardrobe trunk used by Cab Calloway: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

Emilio Pucci for Saks Fifth Avenue tie from the travel wardrobe trunk used by Cab Calloway. The multicolor tie is primarily constructed from silk with a white cotton lining visible at the back of each of the tie’s ends. It features an abstract design of geometric shapes in magenta, light pink, grays, black, white, and purple outlined in thin, black lines. Printed along several of the black lines is the signature [Emilio]. The back of the tie has a handstitched hem that runs down the full length. Near the wide end of the tie, stitched to the center, is a black, rectangular, fabric tag with white embroidered text that reads [MADE IN ITALY FOR / SAKS FIFTH AVENUE / 100% SILK]. Near the end of the thin end of the tie is a white, rectangular, fabric label with green embroidered text that reads [EMILIO PUCCI / FLORENCE - ITALY]. The signature, [Emilio], is woven into a repeating pattern on the white lining of the tie.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: mid 20th-late 20th century
• Designed by: Emilio Pucci, Italian, 1914 - 1992
• Distributed by: Saks Fifth Avenue, American, founded 1867
• Worn by: Cab Calloway, American, 1907 - 1994
• Type: neckties
• Medium: silk (textile)
• Dimensions: H x W x D: 55 1/4 × 4 3/16 × 1/8 in. (140.4 × 10.7 × 0.3 cm)
• Place made: Florence, Tuscany, Italy, Europe
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Band (Music)
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Conductors (Musicians)
• Topic: Costume
• Topic: Entertainers
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Object number: A2015.273.1.1.47
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Cabella Calloway Langsam
• 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: Unknown – Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.