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Culture:face fabric: English; quilting: American
Title:quilt
Date Made:1790-1820
Type:Bedding
Materials:textile: plain weave wool, blue dye (indigo or woad)
Place Made:face fabric: United Kingdom: England; quilting: United States; New England
Measurements:overall: 98 in x 80 3/4 in; 248.92 cm x 205.105 cm
Accession Number:  HD F.574
Museum Collection:  Historic Deerfield
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Description:
Wholecloth blue, glazed plain weave wool (tammy) quilt with an overall, dense quilting design consisting of meandering vines and floral and foliate motifs against diagonal stripes stitched in matching blue worsted thread, approximately 8 stitches per inch (spi); the edges of the quilt folded in and stitched in a double row of parallel lines; a backing pieced with two wool fabrics (one tan, one pink) woven in looser weave; and undyed, wool batting. In the 18th century, a plain weave wool with glaze was referred to as a tammy; a twill weave wool with glaze, a shalloon; a 4:1 broken twill weave (aka the shortest float satin weave), a calamanco; and a plain weave wool with no glaze was referred to as a camblet. These terms are found in Norwich, England, sample books. Wholecloth quilts were a common type of bedcovering made and used in New England in the 18th century. In addition to providing warmth, these objects displayed the skill of the woman or women who stitched them. Although derived from England, New England wholecloth quilts developed their own styles of quilting patterns, and appear much more frequently than imported versions. Although out of fashion by about 1800, these kinds of quilts were made and used well into the 19th century. Linda Eaton, Director of collections and Senior Curator of textiles at the Winterthur Museum (May 14, 2011), notes wool glazing was probably not done in this country in the 18th century given current knowledge and that most evidence of glazed wool comes from England. Winterthur Museum has tested some glazed worsted fabrics, and the presence of an additonal substance such as gum has been detected in some samples suggesting that glazing may have occasionally required more than just heat and pressure of the press. While serving a decorative purpose, glazing might also have added some degree of protection for the face fabric against stains or soiling. Often, when the quilting thread was the same color as the face, the quilting could have been done from the reverse side to better see the stitches. This can be determined sometimes if the quilting stiches are slightly shorter on one side than on the other. Either linen or worsted thread was often used for quilting. Linen prefers a more aklaline environment, and when used with wool, tends to degrade; worsted thread with quilted wool textiles tends to last in good shape.

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https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+F.574

Research on objects in the collections, including provenance, is ongoing and may be incomplete. If you have additional information or would like to learn more about a particular object, please email fc-museums-web@fivecolleges.edu.

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