Bobbin lace bertha collar.
A bertha is a collar made of lace or another thin fabric. It is generally flat and round, covering the low neckline of a dress, and accentuating a woman's shoulders. It was particularly popular in the nineteenth century, but bertha-like garments were also worn in the seventeenth century and are still being worn, as for instance with bridal dresses.
The word was first written down in English in 1856. According to the Shorter Oxford Dictionary, the word is an anglicised version of the French berthe, which is a deep falling collar attached to the top of a low-necked dress.
Digital source(retrieved 3rd April 2016).
Digital source of illustration (retrieved 8th July 2016).
WV
Last modified on Friday, 19 May 2017 18:33
