Strips of Pillar Print chintz quilt, unknown maker from the United States

Archive Label 2003:
This quilt from the era of the Revolutionary War in the United States contains alternating bands of chintz and calico. One of the chintz strips is printed with an ancient Egyptian motif. Near the top of one of the chintz bands is a piece of blue-printed cotton. While this piece may appear out of place, the inclusion of it may be an example of the superstition some quilt makers held against total perfection.

Exhibition Label:
"Quilts! Imported Fabrics, American Treasures," May-2004, Barbara Brackman
Stripes were a popular fashion for clothing and furnishings in Europe and America between 1790 and 1850. The up-to-date draped their beds, papered their walls and covered their chairs with stripes. The look of a wide stripe was so important that women short on imported fabric for bed coverings pieced their own stripes by cutting fabric into lengths and stitching them together, as seen in this quilt.

The mania for stripes found expression in pillar prints echoing classical architecture. The pillar print in this quilt features Egyptian-style designs, which became popular around 1800 when French and British troops brought back antiquities from Egypt.