Central Stellenbosch: Dress code of Stellenbosch Village Museum

Central Stellenbosch: Dress code of Stellenbosch Village Museum

Investigating the semiotic landscape of the house museum in Stellenbosch, South Africa

To facilitate the visitor’s imaging of each house and period, all of the houses of the Stellenbosch Village Museum are equipped with a docent who is dressed in a period-specific costume. The docents all wear bonnets and long dresses – often with aprons covering the front skirts. The ladies of the older houses wear solid coloured shirts and skirts, while the docent in Berghuis wears a checkered shirt; perhaps indicating that, along with the wallpaper on the walls, people in this period were able to access more intricate fabrics.

This is a common practice of many historical house museums, as the addition of an appropriately costumed docent creates a visual reference for visitors to understand the fashions of the day. The docent assumes the role of the homeowner who welcomes visitors into their homes and speaks with authority about the house, its collection and its inhabitants. This all works together to create the feeling that one is visiting this lady’s home, one is being welcomed into her house and given a tour.
https://collections.sun.ac.za/rada/items/show/273

Dr Gera De Villiers