We felt very honoured to be asked to conserve some Coronation Robes belonging to Ickworth House (National Trust) near Bury St. Edmunds in Suffolk. These robes, comprising a cloak, dress and a cape, were worn by Theodora Hervey, 4th Marchioness of Bristol, on the occasions of both George V’s (1911) and George VI’s (1937) coronations.
A mannequin, provided to us in advance by Ickworth House, was adapted to the size of the robes.
Once dressed on-site in June 2018, a Velcro and cotton tape hanging system was used to attach the cloak to the dress (previous attachment of the cloak to the dress, via hooks at the shoulder, had caused several tears because of the cloak’s weight).
As there was no evidence of how the cape was originally fastened or attached to the rest of the robes, it was decided to display the cape alongside the mannequin in a glass display cabinet. By way of further historical interest, the dark fur inserts in the cape represented the aristocracy status of the person wearing the cape, in this case, a marchioness.
Click here to see Ickworth House’s website post on our conservation treatment https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ickworth/features/a-coronation-to-remember