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A Century of Mourning Attire But within the costume center's darkened space, the time frame was specific and its thirty spectral mannequins were tokens of a past that evinced an almost obsessive devotion to the many rules attached to public and private mourning and how these were woven into the fabric of everyday life. We have nothing remotely prescriptive like it today. While one tradition has not been entirely dismantled—black is still the favored color of mourning—in other aspects of funerary occasions, dress has become so casual and colorful that T-shirts/shorts/ and flip flops are considered to be just fine and not disrespectful to the departed. "Death Becomes Her" follows the period from the 1830s to 1915. Average life expectancy was less then fifty and death in childbirth or as a child was common. Infant mortality was so ubiquitous that some parents did not name their children until their first year was reached. Disease and the Civil War only added greatly to grieving periods. A woman could always be in mourning clothes for her child, husband, parents, grandparents, and more distant family members. A husband, though, could leave mourning and remarry in as short as a month and was much less likely to be censured for doing so. Not only her comportment demonstrated familial grief but also what a woman wore in public. Various societal conventions dictated what was appropriate during the grieving process. First, one wore all black, and then over time some white detailing was allowed; as more time passed, gray gained entry to the mourning palette. The final distinction was still visually somber but could flash something a bit more luxe, such as the exhibit's silk dress embroidered with mauve sequins worn by Queen Alexandra when in half-mourning for Queen Victoria. During deepest mourning, the cloth consisted of a light gauzed crinkled crepe with a matte finish. Later a bit more sparkle and sheen with silks, taffeta and moiré could be introduced. Bombazine was often used (a combination of wool and silk) as it kept black dyes the best. The dresses INSTALLATION VIEW OF "DEATH BECOMES HER: A CENTURY OF MOURNING ATTIRE," at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Anna Wintour Costume Center. The exhibition followed the period from the 1830s to 1915, when average life expectancy was less than fifty and death in childbirth or as a child was common. The ensembles ranged from states of full-mourning to that of half-mourning. Photographs by Carolyn L. E. Benesh/Ornament.