An invite to a recent Twelfth Night Gala in Pittsburgh had an unusual theme — the 300th anniversary of the death of Louis XIV — and an equally unorthodox dress code: funereal cocktail chic.

Funeral fashions? That might sound strange, or even morbid. But centuries ago it was a very real — and sometimes very controversial — thing, and its impact still reaches to runways and clothing racks today.

“Mourning dress had a lasting influence on high fashion,” says Jessica Regan, an assistant curator at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. “The prevalence of all-black fashionable mourning attire during the 19th century, which often was described as very becoming, paved the way for the increased use of black in ordinary fashion.”

What women wore to funerals from about 1815 to 1915 is the subject of an exhibit at the museum’s Anna Wintour Costume Center gallery. “Death Becomes Her: A Century of Mourning Attire” which ends Feb. 1, was the first fall exhibit the Costume Institute has held in seven years.

Initially, curators thought about doing an exhibit about the evolution of the black dress during that time period but instead opted to make mourning attire the focus to highlight “the intersection between fashion and rituals of bereavement,” Regan says.

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Most of the pieces on display are part of the Costume Institute’s permanent collection, while others are on loan. At auction, the museum purchased gowns worn by Queen Alexandra and Queen Victoria. When the Brooklyn Museum’s costume institute was transferred a few years ago to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, it acquired more examples of mourning dresses, Regan says.

As with fashion today, the styles were subjective. What people wore back then to grieve — particularly women — was scrutinized.

“During the 19th century, mourning garments became increasingly aligned with fashionable dress, in terms of the silhouette, the cut of the garments and in some cases even the modes of embellishment,” Regan says. “Some women viewed overly fashionable mourning attire as ostentatious and incompatible with a period of grief, preferring simple garments that merely followed the outlines of fashion, while others chose garments that display all the exuberant details of high fashion.”

The expectations for men in mourning, however, were not as elaborate. Because dark suits already were a staple of their wardrobes, what they wore while grieving didn’t vary too much.

“A deep black band around his hat and black gloves would be considered a sufficient acknowledgment of a loss,” Regan says.

“Visitors are often struck first by the beauty of the objects and are surprised by the extent to which they follow the details of high fashion,” Regan says. “Many people have lamented the fact that today there is no way to visibly identify oneself as a mourner.”