Centennial Exposition coverlet; Jacquard; tied-Beiderwand; 1876; Pennsylvania
date: label: Date made
content: 1876
notes: label: Description
content: This American Centennial, Jacquard, tied-Beiderwand coverlet was woven for and sold at the Centennial International Exposition in 1876; a souvenir for visitors. The Centennial Expo was the first official World’s Fair. The coverlet was woven using cotton and wool yarns and features Memorial Hall, the building used to house the art gallery space for the expo, in the center field. The Beaux-Arts building is labeled below, surrounded by ivy, and flanked by a pair of Great Seal eagles. The building still stands in Philadelphia today and was renovated in 2010. Above the hall is the woven inscription, "Centennial.” The dates 1776-1876 are woven into either side of Memorial Hall. There is a floral border along all four sides that depicts floral/foliate and anthemion motifs. These coverlets were produced industrially, likely in the Philadelphia area. There were made as affordable souvenirs and the lower quality is reflected in the thin and loosely spun red wool yarns and the significant loss to the upper edge. The coverlet measures 77.5 inches by 75.5 inches and was almost certainly woven on a Jacquard power loom.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Pennsylvania
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Textiles
label: See more items in
content: Coverlets
label: See more items in
content: Textiles
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Dona Guimaraes
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: TE.T20153
label: catalog number
content: T20153
label: catalog number
content: T.20153
label: accession number
content: 317831
objectType: label: Object Name
content: coverlet, figured
label: Object Name
content: coverlet
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: cotton (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wool (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: jacquard (overall production method/technique)
label: Physical Description
content: Memorial Hall (overall pattern)
label: Physical Description
content: red (overall color)
label: Physical Description
content: white (overall color)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 77 1/2 in x 75 1/2 in; 196.85 cm x 191.77 cm