Beschreibung:

A piece of silk worn by Elizabeth Edwards Clover, Mary Todd's niece, to Lincoln's 1861 Inaugural Ball, March 4th, 1861, a 9 x 8 x 5 inch triangle, colored silk striped in green, black, and gray, with floral design in rose, green and blue, some staining, old stitches. Provenance: Elizabeth Edwards Clover (1843-1910), niece of President and Mary Lincoln; Mary Edwards Brown, by descent; sold to Dorothy Meserve Kunhardt (1901-1979), Lincoln historian and collector (signed and notarized letter of acquisition dated 1957). According to Michael Burlingame, Elizabeth Edwards Clover "inherited much of her famous aunt's wardrobe, which she regularly wore even though the large silk skirts, lace shawls, and tiny carriage parasols had long since passed out of style" (Life, p 181).