Dressed to Kill, Dressed to Till
A pair of military buckskin breeches as worn by mounted officers in the armies of the East India Company (EIC): Bombay, Madras or Bengal, during the last decade of the 18th century. This period was a time of heavy military action in India, with British-led forces fighting against the armies of Tippoo Sahib and other French-aligned allies in a number of hard-fought campaigns. Despite the passage of some 225 years, this pair of buckskin breeches are incredibly supple and soft. Each knee bears five small (15mm) gilded uniform buttons bearing the EIC device of rampant lion holding a crown, with corresponding self-bound buttonholes. There is a silver button set on the back of each kneeband for securing to a boot or gaiter top, while the bands have leather ties in lieu of buckles, the legs cut to come well below the kneepan, in the fashion of this era. The buttons for the waistband and fall are self-covered in buckskin, and all buttonholes are self-bound. The side and watch pocket bags are made of chamois leather, as are the linings of the waistband and fall. The wearer of this pair of breeches and the EIC jacket in this sale, may have both belonged to the same officer originally, although the two artifacts were acquired from different sources and four years apart. The wearer(s) were of good size, tailoring measurements suggesting a man of 6 feet tall, with 40-42 chest (jacket) and 36-38 inch waist (both). Provenance: formerly in the collection of the Hon. David MacAlpine; acquired in 2012.
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