Romeo costume hat worn by Cab Calloway at the Miami Beach Cotton Club

Source catalog description

This description refers to material held by Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Visual details below describe the original material.

A purple boater hat from a costume worn by Cab Calloway at the Miami Beach Cotton Club for a Shakespearian Romeo and Juliet themed routine. The hat is constructed primarily from purple dyed straw. It has a flat top and a wide brim. The hat features a wide, gold, metallic hat band tied in a large flat bow around the proper left side of the crown. A bright yellow fragment of a feather is tucked into the bow. The crown is lined with light brown silk. A black circular stamp at the center of the crown features a shield device at the center with a profile of a squirrel and a lamp above. The shield is framed by pairs of laurel leaf branches on either side of the shield’s base. Black text printed above the shield reads [INCOMPARABLE EXCELLENCE]. Printed below the shield device is black text that reads [Cosmopolitan / NEW YORK].

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