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Baby’s First Gown

The Origins of
Christening Gowns
4

Christening gowns started with the concept of swaddling babies. Swaddling is the practice of wrapping an unreasonable amount of fabric tightly around a baby so they can’t move. Original christening gowns were beautiful bag-like dresses put over the swaddling. The legacy of those swaddling gowns is seen here in the extremely long skirts that certainly don’t allow any movement.

Baptismal certificate for Dorothy Clarke, 1929, Aurora Museum & Archives (77.3.57)
Hughie Norman, 14 months, late 19th Century, Aurora Museum & Archives (84.7.42)
Margaret Nelson, 7 months, 1890,  Aurora Museum & Archives (2016.16.4)
Previous

Introduction

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Baby’s First Gown