Handkerchief

Square handkerchief of very fine linen or cotton with whitework embroidery around the scalloped edge.

In the first half of the 19th century, pocket handkerchiefs became a highly fashionable accessory. Many fashion plates show elegant ladies holding a handkerchief in one hand. The fineness of the fabric as well as the type and amount of embroidery or lace adornment, determined the price and desirability of a handkerchief.

In March 1824, The European and London Review published a letter, supposedly written from a certain Flirtlla to a certain Prudentia, from Paris: 'I advise you to embroider your own pocket handkerchiefs, as that will be a considerable saving, but depend upon my furnishing you with patterns, an elegante cannot be seen with a pocket handkerchief that costs less than a guinea; I have got some delights.' (A guinea was slightly more than £1 and a servant could earn as little as £10 per year)