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Examination report Kate Douglas Case The case of the fraudulent fur Item Muff, c.1920 Summary This 1920s muff from the National Gallery of Victoria’s collection had the appearance of being made from a mink, with the paws and head intact. Analysis was carried out by NGV textile conservators to determine what animal the fur came from, and some surprising information was uncovered about the animal’s identity. Background information There is a long history of cheaper furs being altered by a variety of techniques during processing to replicate more expensive and rare furs but this was particularly prevalent in the 1920s. The popularity of fur in this period, coupled with the shortage of the rarer and more valuable furs, meant that quality furs were in short supply. An effective means of relieving this shortage was the dyeing of cheaper skins to replicate scarcer furs. Obviously in doing this the financial reward was also huge. This activity is described neatly in a quote by William E. Austin, consulting chemist to the American fur industry, in 1922: There are many animals among the more common and more easily obtainable ones, whose skins are admirably suited as the basis of imitations of the more costly furs. Some of the furs which are adapted for purposes of dyeing imitations are … red fox, rabbit, hare, muskrat … and imitations made of mink, sable, marten, skunk … And indeed there are very few valuable furs which have not been dyed on cheaper pelts. 1 Process To determine the structure of the muff, it was studied by the NGV Textile Conservation department using visual observation and x-radiography. The micro-morphology of the fur fibres were then analysed using an optical microscope and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Finally, because of the complexities of identifying furs, an expert in fur identification was used to confirm the findings. Unknown, Muff, c.1920 X-ray showing the hand-stitched seams between fur pelts, constructed legs, dome support inside the head and the metal wire holding the glass eyes in place. 38
Evidence On examination it can be seen that the fur on the muff is thick, shiny and fine, and the pelt is an even black colour from skin to tip, apart from the fur on the head and legs which is black with a red undertone. This uniformity of colour raises the possibility that the fur has been heavily dyed, as animals which have black pelts tend towards a brownish shade of black with subtle variations in colour nearer the skin. 2 X-radiography revealed that the ‘mink’ on the muff is actually a construction made from several pelts of animal fur, with the main body of the muff constructed from three sections, stitched together with two invisible joins along the length of the object. The head and two paws are attached separately. The x-ray taken of the muff clearly showed the seams between all pieces. In addition, it was revealed that the head contains a dome, giving it form and structure, and that the glass eyes are held together inside the head with a material whose radio opacity suggests it is metallic wire. The paws are tubes of seamed pelts, unfinished at the ends, and the nose and ears are stitched in place. A few individual hairs were removed from the muff and examined using an optical microscope, with three distinct types of fur discovered: fine, intermediate and coarse. The intermediate fibres have a distinct ladder-like appearance in the medulla (the central portion of the fibre). This appears as evenly spaced, dark patches arranged as a single series. The medulla of the guard fur, by contrast, has a very fine granular texture. Although these observations narrowed down the possible fur suspects, a number of animals, including cat, mink and opossum, possess similar identifiers. Fine, immediate and coarse fibres viewed through an optical microscope (whole mount, 400x magnification) Detail of the constructed head on the muff Fine mink fibres viewed through an optical microscope (whole mount, 400x magnification) Scale casts were made to further differentiate between these fibres. The process revealed a distinctive, overlapping diamond petal scale pattern on the mid-length of the intermediate fibre and base of the coarse fibre, with waved mosaic patterns at both tips. This information gave a match for fox but not for mink, which, though similar at the tip, has lanceolate and pectinate (teeth-like) patterns at base. 3 X-ray showing the internal structure of the constructed head (detail) 39
Page 1 and 2: Danielle Whitfield
Page 3 and 4: Foreword Fashion Detective is an ex
Page 5 and 6: Introduction Danielle Whitfield You
Page 7 and 8: Unknown, England, Dress, c.1865 (de
Page 9 and 10: Within the exhibition, four ghostly
Page 11 and 12: Unknown, Australia, Dress, c.1865 1
Page 13 and 14: Unknown, Australia, Wedding dress,
Page 15 and 16: 14 The case of the fake Worth
Page 17 and 18: Evidence According to Worth’s bio
Page 19 and 20: THE REAL McCOY He followed her to a
Page 21 and 22: Unknown, Australia, Waistcoat, 1890
Page 23 and 24: 23 The case of the poisonous pigmen
Page 25 and 26: x 1E3 Pulses 5 Calcium 19th century
Page 27 and 28: Sulari Gentill eginald Kane was unt
Page 29 and 30: 29 The secret in the doll’s dress
Page 31 and 32: In the nineteenth century paper was
Page 33 and 34: PAPER PIECING It is exquisite. Piec
Page 35 and 36: It is a perfect fit. It requires no
Page 37: 37 The case of the fraudulent fur
Page 41 and 42: ESCAPE FROM GRANTCHESTER MANOR It i
Page 43 and 44: I probably have a few days, thought
Page 45 and 46: List of works Note to reader The li
Page 47 and 48: Unknown, England Sailor suit (c.190

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