Chintz Applique Quilt by Ruth McConnell of Philadelphia, 1793
Add to SetSummary
At first glance, Ruth McConnell's quilt looks as though she embroidered its design. Yet its flowers, birds, and other elements were cut from colorfully printed chintz and sewn onto the background fabric. (These quilts were later called "broderie perse," French for Persian embroidery.). Ruth completed this quilt shortly before Philadelphia's 1793 Yellow Fever epidemic -- as her daughter Julia noted on the back in 1849.
At first glance, Ruth McConnell's quilt looks as though she embroidered its design. Yet its flowers, birds, and other elements were cut from colorfully printed chintz and sewn onto the background fabric. (These quilts were later called "broderie perse," French for Persian embroidery.). Ruth completed this quilt shortly before Philadelphia's 1793 Yellow Fever epidemic -- as her daughter Julia noted on the back in 1849.
Artifact
Quilt
Date Made
1793
Creators
Place of Creation
United States, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
Creator Notes
Made by Ruth Hall McConnell of Philadelphia, assisted by her cousins Hannah and Mary Parry.
Location
Not on exhibit to the public.
Object ID
2013.29.1
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford.
Material
Cotton (Textile)
Chintz
Batting
Technique
Applique (Technique)
Piecing
Quilting
Glazing (Coating)
Hand sewing
Color
Blue
Brown
Cream (Color)
Green
Red
Dimensions
Height: 103 in
Width: 111 in
Inscriptions
Inscribed on back of quilt: The work of my Mother Ruth McConnell | & her cousins Hannah & Mary Parry in year 1793 | previous to my birth (September of that year) | during yellow fever- | Julia M. Miles May 14th 1849. Sewn-on tag on the proper right bottom of quilt: Western PA Quilt / Documentation Project / BVR.0187
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