Description:
Yarn-sewn hearth rug depicting a lion and tiger in the desert with palm trees and pyramid shapes in the background, and a four-sided floral border on a dark ground. The lion and tiger images were probably taken from prints or advertisements for traveling menagerie shows which were popular in New England. These small rugs were used in front of fireplaces to protect floorboards or expensive carpets from being burned by flying sparks or from being worn out by shuffling feet. Smaller yarn-sewn and shirred rugs, which grew in popularity during the early 19th century, were made in homes and ladies’ academies, as well as in factories. Around 1850, hooked rugs and the commercial production of hooked rug patterns began to replace them.
Label Text:
Smaller yarn-sewn and shirred rugs grew in popularity during the early 19th century as a means of protecting and decorating the floors and larger carpets of parlors and bed chambers. While this decorative example portrays exotic animals in a far away setting (perhaps copied from a print), its primary function was a practical one. Rugs were made in homes and ladies’ academies, as well as in factories.
Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+R.094A |
