Most of us only experience our ancestors’ weddings through old photographs carefully stored in attics and passed down through time. However, one family in the UK was able to get a very personal look at the wedding dress their long-lost relative wore to her wedding in the early 20th century – which was actually the first time anyone had ever seen the dress. According to the BBC (which includes exclusive images of the dress), the photographer did not show up for the bride’s wedding in 1910 – so the dress and the rest of the details of the big day were lost.

Jennifer Slater viewed the heirloom, which belonged to her grandmother Lily Cathcart, with her daughter and two grandchildren at the Leeds Discovery Centre, where the garment was kept. Her visit to the museum was in honour of Lily, who family records show was a passionate suffragette and campaigner for women’s suffrage. According to Jennifer, Lily became a teacher at Quarry Mount School before attending Darlington Training College in 1905 to gain her teaching qualification. In 1910, when she was 26, she married her husband Charles at Buslingthorpe Church in Leeds; the celebration was apparently a “lavish” affair.

And what about the dress? The high-necked wedding dress was contemporary; the satin and tulle dress was Edwardian-style, with navy embroidery on the front, a gathered waist, sheer sleeves with beige embroidered lace, and petticoats filled with weights, a fashion trick that made the garment swing and sway with the bride’s every move. The dress’s biggest surprise, however, had nothing to do with the delicate fabric or the historic design: Jennifer and her relatives were delighted to find pieces of confetti (probably thrown during Lily and Charles’ exit after the ceremony at Buslingthorpe Church) in the fabric.

According to Jennifer, seeing her grandmother’s wedding dress in person meant a lot to her, as she was such an important and influential figure to the family’s generations past and present. “My grandmother’s achievements were truly extraordinary for that time. Women didn’t really go to work back then, let alone study and get a degree. Given that, it’s not surprising that she was part of the suffragette movement, because she was able to achieve her own ambitions in a way that 99 percent of other women couldn’t,” she told the outlet.

Although Lily’s wedding dress is too dainty to be on permanent display at the Leeds Discovery Centre, it remains emblematic of a woman’s values ​​and commitment to herself and her family. “I think we all understand that we need to be like our mother and grandmother, who showed us what it means to fulfil our potential and have the means to be independent,” Jennifer said.