[FASHION] [BEAVER HAT] .

Man's black beaver top hat in its original hat box; perhaps 1825 to 1840.Gilt stamp centered inside the hat's crown for "C. Tompkins", Hudson, NY,in a laurel wreath with Latin motto. Box front bears a large printedlabel: "C. Tompkins, [printed and pasted over the original top line],Manufacturer and Dealer in Hats, Caps and Furs, No. 100 Warren street,Hudson, N.Y. [and at the bottom] John Dubuque & Son, Paper Box Makers, 43Broadway, Albany [all within an ornamental border]." Hat crown 6 ¾ incheshigh, brim 1 5/8 inches wide, band is a ¼ inch black gros grain ribbon;inside are a stiff pale bl...

Beaver hats, often simply termed "beavers," were a fashionable but dear item for men from the end of the 18th century until over-trapping of the animal and the popularity of silk supplanted it in the 1830s. During decades of dominance, the resulting demand for beaver fur to make hat felting considerably invigorated the market for the great American fur trader John Jacob Astor. In this hat, the rather narrow flat brim, straighter-sided crown, and narrow band (as well as the type and design of the box label) suggest the latter part of the beaver hat's popularity.

• USD 750.00 > other currencies
• ordernr.: 51357

• bookseller: Bartleby's Books (USA)