SILK battle maps used during the Second World War were turned into dresses after the Allies’ victory.

The method and reason will be explained at a free event in Worthing on 30 June.

Other historical areas to be explored include how suffragettes used fashion in their protests and the hazards of hand-knitted bathing costumes in the 1930s.

‘Objects Unwrapped’ is a collaborative project between students and staff at the University of Brighton and Worthing Museum and Art Gallery to develop “understanding and communication of its exceptional collections”.

Dr Annebella Pollen, Academic Programme Leader, History of Art and Design at the University of Brighton, said: “There will be short talks and object displays – and visitors will learn about the science of patchwork quilts in the 1830s and fears of fiction in campaigns against public libraries in the 1890s.”

The event, supported by the University’s Centre for Design History and the first of its kind, runs at the Museum and Art Gallery between 1.30pm and 4pm and includes refreshments.

For more information, go to: https://blogs.brighton.ac.uk/objectsunwrapped/