Plural form of aigrette; decorative plumes or feathery ornaments made from egret feathers, used extensively in fashionable dress and millinery.
From French 'aigrettes', plural of 'aigrette', derived from the sharp-pointed appearance of egret plumage.
A single expensive aigrette could cost more than a working person's yearly salary in the 1900s, making them status symbols that led to massive egret hunting and ultimately to modern conservation laws protecting the birds.
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