Five wedding dresses from the national textiles collection are being exhibited at the Inquisitor’s Palace – National Museum of Ethnography, in Vittoriosa.

The gowns date to the 19th and 20th centuries and one of them, worn first in 1979, was worn for a second time in 2001 by the original bride’s daughter.

The earliest exhibit is a silk lamè handmade wedding dress from the first half of the 19th century.

A black blouse and skirt bought in 1917, a 1952 satin wedding dress sewn by the bride’s mother and embroidered by the bride herself, and a 1965 wedding dress complete with veil, created by a dressmaker, are also on display.

The fifth gown is a 1979 creation, complete with a hooded cape, designed and sewn by the bride and her mother. This dress was worn again by the bride’s daughter on her own wedding day 22 years later.

Two interviews – one with the son of the 1917 bride and another one with the bride whose dress was worn by herself and her daughter will be streamed at the exhibition.

Wedding dress styles and fabrics varied considerably over the years, as attested by this exhibition. Telecommunications, the advent of photography, the printing of fashion and needlecraft books, magazines and patterns, as well as the manufacture and production of various fabrics and haberdashery items, all left their mark.

Besides fashion trends, other factors that influenced bridal preferences included the bride’s family’s socio-economic, religious and financial status, or the bride’s personal situation, such as being orphaned or widowed.

The exhibition runs until July 2024. Its launch coincides with Birgufest, held on October 13 and 14.

On Saturday, the Inquisitor’s Palace and Fort St Angelo will be offering extended opening hours and a combo ticket for both sites at only €3.

The ticket can only be bought at the door.