The parasol was a popular accessory during the 19th and early 20th century, a period when sun tanned skin was highly undesirable. It functioned both as a sunshade and a fashionable accompaniment to dress, distinguishing itself from the umbrella through its infinite and luxurious forms and essentially feminine status. Like the earlier trend for fans parasols displayed an individual's style and could be used in a coquettish ritual to hide the modest bearer from unwanted glances.
Complicated and ever - changing rules dictated every aspect of a woman's attire during a period of mourning, and instructions on what to wear and when were published in women's magazines. This parasol from the 1890s is entirely black, right down to the carved ebonised wooden handle. The deep lace flounce around the edges would have hidden the face which in deepest early mourning would have been hidden by a veil.