Beatrix, 1944

The whole point of this Art Nouveau négligée is restraint — opals, worn thin at the back where a hand has turned it for a century, and nothing more than chased naturalistic goldwork. It is back-carved so the light enters from behind — the maker's quiet trick. The last owner was a house on the Danube; with a note in the box naming the woman who first wore it. It asks very little of whoever wears it next and gives back a great deal.