Item 2021.7.2 - Reversible Workwear Smock

From Inside the Westminster Menswear Archive:

WORKWEAR SMOCK
Maker unknown
1850–70
In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the English smock was primarily associated with male workers in a variety of rural occupations. It is one of the few garments that was originally intended for men but is now almost exclusively worn by women. The smock’s worn and stained condition, weight of fabric, style of smocking and utilitarian embroidery indicate that it was worn for manual labour. These features also suggest that it may have been bought ready-made. It can be worn either way around as it is cut symmetrically from rectangular pieces, with square gussets under the arm and large flapped pockets that are positioned each side at hip level. The smocking stitches across the chest, back and cuffs are entirely hand-stitched and control the fabric volume.
Linen, Cotton
Archive no. 2021.7.2