ESSE Purse Museum, Fashion museum in South Main Street, Little Rock, United States
ESSE Purse Museum displays hundreds of handbags with their original contents, arranged in chronological order from 1900 through 1999 to show how these accessories changed over time. The exhibition is organized so visitors can trace the evolution of styles, materials, and sizes as they connect to the everyday needs of different eras.
The museum started as a traveling exhibition created by Curatrix Group in 2006, moving from place to place for several years before establishing its permanent home in Little Rock in 2013. This transition allowed the collection to find a stable location where it could continue to grow.
Handbags are presented here as reflections of what women carried and how their daily lives changed over time. The collection shows how styles shifted with new jobs, clothing fashions, and the changing ways women moved through the world.
The museum is located on South Main Street and is easy to reach on foot, with plenty of room to walk through the exhibits comfortably. There is also a museum shop where you can browse handbags and accessories made by independent makers after your visit.
It is one of only three museums in the world dedicated solely to handbags. This rarity makes it a special place for anyone interested in how everyday objects tell the story of women's lives across the past 100 years.
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