Hand-Stitched Patchwork Checkerboard Quilt

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This charming hand-stitched quilt features a patchwork design with varied patterns and colors, predominantly in shades of green, pink, and … Read more This charming hand-stitched quilt features a patchwork design with varied patterns and colors, predominantly in shades of green, pink, and cream. The quilt embodies a traditional, folk-art style, reflecting domestic craftsmanship and likely dating from the late 19th century.

From the Metropolitan Museum of Art:

"During the heyday of quiltmaking in the nineteenth century, America’s increasingly mobile population was moving westward, settling in the wilderness. Easily portable, and certainly necessary, bedcovers might be some of the few decorative objects a woman had in her home. Bedcovers were often wedding gifts, or made by a young woman to take with her to her future husband’s house. If that new home was distant from friends and family, a bedcover became an important keepsake from her old life. Quilts were also made to celebrate the birth of a child, as gifts to thank important members of the community such as the local minister, and even sometimes in remembrance of the dead."

The tradition of American quiltmaking carried on to the 20th century, with innovations on older patterns and new kinds of fabrics/material available from advances in industry and technology. See less