Following the previous post about doll character options for a 1920s American Girl historical doll, here are some interesting finds from contemporary newspapers about the influence of Ancient Egypt on clothing and jewelry. Apparently, the fashion world was hit the hardest, causing a craze that rivals or beats any “Princess Kate” effect of the modern day! The iconic bobbed hairstyle had been on the way “out”, but it managed to hang around long enough to cater to the new 1923 Egyptian look. A paper in Dayton (Ohio) was nice enough to publish a photo along with their article about the “King Tut” hats that flooded the market. Of course, there were dresses, blouses and silks to match, King Tut neckwear, belts and vanity cases. The effect was endless in the fashion world.
Click on any images to enlarge.
King Tut sandals appear to have been as popular as the hats (paired with the absolutely necessary “King Tut Hosiery”), and almost every paper had ads for them during the summer of 1923. Interestingly, they don’t look like the sandals found in the tomb or those worn today. “Sandals” in 1923 were more of what we now refer to as “T-Straps” and came in a variety of leather tones. Here are a few ads that Claudie and Estelle might well have seen:
Put together your King Tut hat, sandals and pajamas, and you have a super snazzy beach costume. At least, that’s what one fashionable girl thought on the Italian Riviera in 1923!
Finally, the finishing touch to all fashion — jewelry. This was also highly influenced by the King Tut craze, causing jewelers to offer everything from large dangle earrings, ornate anklets and pocket flasks. The following article in an Omaha (Nebraska) paper from May 1923 is just one of many:
“King Tut pocket flasks are the latest thing developed by the world-wide craze for Egyptian styles, according to P.J. Coffey, a manufacturing jeweler of Newark.
Anklets and amulets, Coffey says, were coming into vogue as a result of the Egyptian fad. “Don’t be surprised,” he says, “if you see a flapper on the avenue with gold, silver, or white-gold circlets studded with semi-precious stones dangling about her ankle. They are wearing them in Paris and London, and they will soon be on this side of the water. Egyptians of Tut-Ankh-Amen’s time knew nothing of diamonds. Their gems were emeralds, sapphires, rubies, carnelian, lapis lazuli, turquoise, onyx and other translucent stones. These are renewing their hold on the public. Jade is also having a wide vogue.”
While Claudie and Estelle would be too young to wear these 1920s high fashions for young women, they might be absolutely adorable wearing a costume/dress-up outfit in the vein. Plus, they could have an older sister who is crazy about the King Tut theme, giving the younger girls a reason to experience the fun.
It’s been a lot of fun finding all this stuff. We’ve almost finished some new Archaeology-themed pieces for the Islandshore store, so I hope to share pictures of those pretty soon in a future post.