Dresser Set

An image of a two tiered dressing table with ivory set of combs, brushes, glove stretcher, etc.
Dresser set in the Blue Bedroom

Country of Origin: Japan  
Year: ca. 1880s 
Materials: Ivory and metal   

Dresser sets, placed on a vanity table, were popular amongst Victorian women and were often given as gifts upon a girl’s maturity into womanhood. They included all of the items necessary to being a lady and looking presentable for society. This set is made of ivory from Japan, and all the pieces have carvings of flowers, leaves and dragons. The set includes: a hand mirror, two hairbrushes, a glove stretcher, a rectangular clothes brush, and a comb. The bristles on the brushes are made of boar. 

We acknowledge that we are on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabek, Haudenosaunee, Lūnaapéewak and Attawandaron. We honour and respect the history, languages and culture of the diverse Indigenous people who call this territory home.

We acknowledge all the treaties that are specific to this area: the Two Row Wampum Belt Treaty of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy/Silver Covenant Chain; the Beaver Hunting Grounds of the Haudenosaunee NANFAN Treaty of 1701; the McKee Treaty of 1790, the London Township Treaty of 1796, the Huron Tract Treaty of 1827, with the Anishinaabeg, and the Dish with One Spoon Covenant Wampum of the Anishnaabek and Haudenosaunee.

The three Indigenous Nations that are neighbours to London are the Chippewas of the Thames First Nation; Oneida Nation of the Thames; and the Munsee-Delaware Nation who all continue to live as sovereign Nations with individual and unique languages, cultures, and customs.