This bodice is made of black silk that has narrow cording woven into the fibers. The bodice is gathered to fit while the polished cotton lining is darted to fit. The lining and fashion fabric are treated as one in the back and separately in the front.
The back is made of two side back pieces and a curved center back. The center back is pieced so perfectly that you have to examine it closely to notice it's not one piece of fabric.
There is a small stand up collar at the neck with braided trim and an attached collar. The attached collar has a thick piece of rope attached to it, possibly for trim or support.
The bodice construction uses a mixture of machine and hand stitches.
The sleeves are a coat sleeve with wavy braid trim at the cuff.
The waist is finished by being sewn to a silk bias band which is turned up and whipped stitched to the polished cotton lining. The lining is fitted and has 11 pieces of boning, two at center front, one in each of the four front darts, one in each of the front side seams, one at center back, and two more on the back. The boning casings are mismatched. The seam allowances are hand overcast to finish.