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Overview
This is an example of colonial menswear worn in New Zealand in the 1850s. Made from a silk brocade, its wearer was William Rhodes (1807-1878), a businessman in his mid-forties who was at the time, one of the wealthiest men in the colony (Rhodes was known in the 1850s as the 'millionaire of Wellington'). He wore this waistcoat when he married 18-year-old Sarah King (1833-1862) on 7 May 1852.
The pair were married at the Anglican church, St Paul's, Thorndon, in Wellington. The waistcoat was sewn from the same fabric used for Sarah King's bridal dress.
White or cream wedding attire had been popularised by royalty, especially Queen Victoria when she married Prince Albert in 1840. It signalled that the wearer came from a elite and/or wealtly family that could afford a garment that could only be worn once, as white was impractical for everyday wear.
The couple were childless when Sarah Rhodes died on 8 August 1862 aged 28.