expression
A very polite, old-fashioned, and feminine expression used to apologize or get someone's attention. Now largely archaic and stereotypically associated with refined or affected speech.
「ごめんあそばせ」と彼女は優雅に言った。
"I beg your pardon," she said gracefully.
ごめんあそばせ、どなたさまでいらっしゃいますか？
Excuse me, who might you be?
ごめんなさい is the standard polite apology in modern Japanese, while ごめんあそばせ is an archaic, highly formal, and feminine variant.
すみません is the common modern expression for 'excuse me' or 'I'm sorry', whereas ごめんあそばせ is old-fashioned and rarely used outside period speech or affectation.
Derived from ご免 (gomen, 'pardon') + 遊ばせ (asobase), an honorific imperative form of 遊ぶ (asobu, 'to play'), used as a polite auxiliary. The exact historical development is uncertain, but the phrase became a stereotypical polite feminine expression in pre-modern Japanese.