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This information was automatically generated from data provided by MOA: University of British Columbia. It has been standardized to aid in finding and grouping information within the RRN. Accuracy and meaning should be verified from the Data Source tab.

Description

Long, flared coat with long sleeves and front opening overlapping to the right, made of white cotton fabric. The coat has a V neck with outer and inner facings of the same material and with a rounded corner at the lower edge on the left side, and a squared corner at the right side. There is a narrower outer facing or collar of white cotton squared at the lower ends and hand-sewn in place. One wide ribbon tie is attached at the mid-point of the place where the wider facing meets the front edge and another is attached at the corresponding level on the right side. There are shorter, narrower ribbon ties on the inside, attached to the facing and on the left underarm seam. The sleeves are inset with straight seams and have slight convex curves at their lower edges. The coat has a centre back seam, a pair of flared gussets under each arm and a slightly flared panel descending from the mid-point of each outer facing so that the coat overlaps at the front when closed. There are small openings in the side seams at waist level on each side. The inside facings are not stitched in place. Coat made to be worn with pants and jacket (2535/1, 3).

History Of Use

Clothing of good quality white cotton was worn by rural intellectuals, such as teachers, in the 1950s. Good quality cotton and rayon were very precious in the early 1950s in the countryside. In the immediate postwar period ordinary rural people wore clothing made of blanket fabric, or clothing left from the army or obtained from UNICEF. Later those who remained poor wore odd jackets and pants obtained through relief programmes, while those who were more prosperous wore white clothing except for festivals, when coloured clothing was worn. Older men wore long coats “Doo-ru-ma-gui” and horsehair hats. In the winter people wore padded clothing. When rural women worked in the rice paddies, they pulled their skirts up between their legs so they became like pants. Rural people wore very clean clothes on social occasions. Women washed the clothing in cold mountain streams, and ironed it by beating it against a stone platform with wooden beaters, two women sitting facing each other. Such coats “Doo-ru-ma-gui” became a part of men’s formal wear in the early- to mid- Chosun Dynasty. In the middle of the Chosun Dynasty, the front panels of the coat overlapped completely, but by the end of the dynasty there was little overlap. At the end of the Chosun Dynasty, the government legislated the simplification of clothing. In the case of the “Doo-ru-ma-gui”, this meant the elimination of slits at the lower end of the side seams, and their replacement with a pair of flared gussets at each side. These often were pleated at the top for comfort. When men began wearing western-style vests with pockets after the opening of Korea to the outside world at the end of the 19th century, “Doo-ru-ma-gui” often were made with slits at waist level so that men could reach objects carried in their vest pockets. “Doo-ru-ma-gui” are still worn as festival wear, and can be worn over western clothes.. In the cities, men began wearing western suits during this period, and urban women wore Korean jackets, “Jo-go-ri”, and skirts, “Chi’ma”, in finer materials and bright colours, although by 1958 they, too, began to wear western clothing.

Specific Techniques

All seams appear to be machine-sewn except for that attaching the inner collar or facing.

Narrative

Mr. Waddell did not actually wear this set of clothing. He also had padded socks and rubber Korean-style shoes to complete the outfit.

Item History

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