By
Reuters
Published
September 17, 2025
From her dazzling jewels and silk footwear to modern interpretations of her extravagant gowns, a new exhibition exploring the style of France’s doomed 18th-century queen Marie Antoinette opens in London this week.
The V&A Museum in London is hosting “Marie Antoinette Style,” the UK’s first exhibition dedicated to the French queen. Born into the Austrian royal family, Marie Antoinette married King Louis XVI of France and quickly became one of the most fashionable—and controversial—figures of her time. Her lavish tastes and extravagant image contributed to rising tensions that culminated in the French Revolution. In 1793, revolutionaries executed both her and her husband. She was 37 years old.
“(The exhibition is) about the style shaped by the most fashionable queen in history, Marie Antoinette,” said exhibition curator Sarah Grant. “We look at the style that she shaped from 1770 until her death and then the legacy of that style.”
Approximately 250 objects are on display, including Marie Antoinette’s footwear, jewelry, and personal belongings, such as an eau de cologne bottle and a porcelain dinner service.
Fashions from the period, along with portraits of the queen and her furnishings, are also included in the exhibition. These feature several items on loan from the Palace of Versailles. Among the more poignant displays are her prison chemise and a final handwritten note composed shortly before her execution.
The contemporary section showcases an array of designer gowns and shoes that examine Marie Antoinette’s influence on fashion and film. These include costumes created for Sofia Coppola’s 2006 film “Marie Antoinette,” which starred Kirsten Dunst in the titular role.
“What’s incredible is that her influence has been so continuous,” Grant said. “It’s continued… really ever since her death and continues now.”
“Marie Antoinette Style” opens on Saturday and runs until March.
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