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Museum object · Clothing - Costume

Green coat worn by Oprah Winfrey as Sofia in The Color Purple

1985

North Carolina, United States, North and Central America

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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.

Green coat worn by Oprah Winfrey as the character Sofia Johnson in the film "The Color Purple." The full-length, long-sleeved, single-breasted coat is made from a dark green wool tweed plaid. The coat closes at the front with five (5) large round olive fabric-covered buttons that fasten using loops of black cord sewn to the edge of the proper right front. The front sides are turned open and stitched down near the and along the outer edges, making the button and loop closure non-functioning. A wide band of olive wool with stumpwork embroidery in olive rayon of a highly stylized leafy vine design is sewn around the front sides and around the collar, and is cut to follow the tapering of the turned front and the rounded notches at the turned collar. This same olive embroidered band is sewn around the cuff of both sleeves, which are also turned.

Sources & collection details

Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture — original record ↗

Source collection ↗

Catalog metadata · CC0 · Source checked 2026-10-13

Catalog reference: 2014.184.1.2

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