‘Downton Abbey’ cast costumes on exhibit at Delaware’s Winterthur

When another day dawns at Downton Abbey, the efficient Mrs. Hughes is already attired in her black-on-black patterned dress. But who knew that Mrs. Hughes was so chic?

A television screen flattens colors so it’s impossible for viewers to see, much less appreciate, the beading and applique on her dress. No sensible woman of any era would wear it to do real housework or run up and down a Yorkshire castle’s staircases.

This costume, plus 39 others worn on PBS’ “Downton Abbey,” is on exhibit through Jan. 4 at Winterthur, a former du Pont estate in the Brandywine River Valley.

“We have costumes from every single season,” said Maggie Lidz, one of four people who curated the show.

Winterthur (pronounced Winter-TUR) was the home of Henry Francis du Pont and his wife, Ruth Wales. The 982-acre compound, which opened to the public in 1951, has 60 acres of gardens plus 175 room displays that span American decorative arts from 1640 to 1860. Although the mansion is now undergoing a major renovation, it remains open for tours.

Inside the Galleries Building, this beautifully lit costume exhibition has broken all attendance records at the estate. After a gala party March 1, the crowds poured in, hungry for haute couture, tiaras and tea. By mid-September, 125,000 people had visited Winterthur, said Liz Farrell, a museum spokeswoman.

The “Downton Abbey” costumes, she said, are “an entrance point into early 20th century history, a rich time period when the United States became central to world politics and world finance. The financial center of the world shifted from London to New York. I hope people become more interested in this period,” Lidz said.

These are evocative, sumptuous clothes. There’s a sea green velvet dress plus a stunning blue-and-gold harem outfit, both of which were worn by Lady Sybil.

Lady Mary’s black-and-white spider gown radiates a kind of glamour we associate with the likes of Marlene Dietrich or Greta Garbo, and it is displayed under a glittering crystal chandelier loaned especially for this show.

Visitors also learn how the du Ponts’ lifestyle differed from that of the fictional Crawleys. Lidz is an expert on this topic because she is writing a book about service spaces in American homes, which included butler’s pantries, closets, kitchens, laundries, nurseries, garages and wine cellars.