Sunday Times

THE BERNBERG DRESSES

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“It’s a collection comparable to that of the V&A Museum in London,” says curator Pholoso More of this glorious miscellany of Edwardian and Victorian gowns and accessorie­s. The clothes belonged to sisters Anna and Theresa Bernberg, who had been avid collectors of period fashion and who were often seen wearing the costumes around

Johannesbu­rg in the first half of the last century. When the sisters died in the 1960s they bequeathed the clothes and their Forest Town home to the city, and it was run as a small boutique museum. When the site was earmarked for the new Holocaust & Genocide Memorial Centre the garments were moved in rows of airtight bags to Museum Africa. Some are too old and fragile to be displayed, but much is available to see, by appointmen­t.

Viewed by appointmen­t. Museum Africa, Lilian Ngoyi Street, 071-499-4991.

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