Posting like crazy, sorry.

[isabelladangelo]

Vickie's Knickers!

By EMILY RISTOW

LONDON (AP) - Her majesty would not be amused. A pair of Queen Victoria's bloomers, with a 50-inch waist, were snapped up for $9,000 by a Canadian buyer at a central England auction Wednesday.

Auctioneer Charles Hanson said Queen Victoria's underpants belonged to "a very big lady of quite small stature with a very wide girth." She was said to be 5 feet (1.52 meters) tall.

The handmade knickers - which date back to the 1890s - bear the monogram "VR" for Victoria Regina. They are open-crotch style, with separate legs joined by a drawstring at the waist, a popular style in the late Victorian era.

The royal drawers belonged to a family in western England whose ancestor was a lady-in-waiting for the queen.

"These pants, considering their provenance and pedigree, are very exciting," Hanson said. "They are monogrammed and crested and we know that they are hers."

Also up for auction was Queen Victoria's chemise, with a 66-inch bust, sold for $8,000. Her nightgown sold for $11,000.

Before the auction, Hanson valued the underwear at $1,000, while the chemise and nightgown were valued at $600 each.

Queen Victoria lived from 1819 to 1901. She became queen at age 18 and was the U.K.'s longest-reigning monarch. Her reign is noted for both imperial expansion and the decreasing political power of the monarch.

http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080730/D928AV500.html

Comments

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

The next time someone tries to talk me into the idea that Victorian women were dainty little creatures, I'm going to tell them about Victoria's fifty-inch waist.

[isabelladangelo.livejournal.com]

You mean we aren't obese by Victorian standards? I'm not supposed to have the 19 1/2" waist like Scarlett? :-p

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

Har. Looking at family photographs, I am precisely the same shape and size as any number of my female ancestors. (It's kind of disheartening when you realize that generations of women in your family had the bingo wings, and not amount of floor scrubbing and heavy lifting will make them go away.) In fact, I fit into the skirt for my great-great-aunt's pre-WWI wedding dress very nicely, uncorseted.

Um, tangent over, I think we are both smaller than Queen Victoria was for a sizeable portion of her reign.

[isabelladangelo.livejournal.com]

Um, tangent over, I think we are both smaller than Queen Victoria was for a sizeable portion of her reign.

Lol!

I remember reading some of the old Sears catalogue sizes and, yeap, the dresses came in my uncorseted size. I'm pretty sure if I did wear a corset every day, I'd loose a size or two but other than that? Yeah, haven't changed nearly as much as everyone thinks.

The one thing I would like is some of my family's clothing. I've seen photos and just drool. I wouldn't be surprised if my Great Aunt Mary had some but other than that? The oldest piece of clothing that I know one of my ancestor's wore is from the 1970's. I do have a lot of the vintage and antique jewelry though!