Floral Motifs on Early Chintz
Dahlia sp -  Dahlia
Dahlia pinnata (Dahlia)(published as Dahlia superflua) from William Curtis, Curtis's Botanical Magazine, vol. 44, plate 1885, 1817
Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) growing in a modern garden.
Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) from theMetropolitan Museum of Art, Star of Bethlehem Quilt, Accession No. 1973.204, c. 1835 
Common Names: Dahlia
 
Description: Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) is a member of the Aster Family (Asteraceae). The Hortus Kewensis, ed. 2, vol. 5 recorded two species both native of Mexico.  One was introduced into cultivation in Britain in 1789 and the second in 1802.  Most images of dahlias on chintz are likely horticultural varieties.
 
Quilts with this Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) motif: 
  • Metropolitan Museum of Art, Star of Bethlehem Quilt, Accession No. 1973.204, c. 1835 
  • Philadelphia Museum of Art, Jane Gordon Quilt, Accession Number 1941-109-1, America’s Quilts and Coverlets, p. 170, dated 1841 
  • Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Appliquéd and Pieced Quilt by the Boyle Sisters, Quilts of Virginia 1607-1899: The Birth of America Through the Eye of a Needle, p. 115, c. 1830-1845  
  • Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Petersburg Appliqued Quilt, made by the Boyle sisters, Object Number 1991-645, Four Centuries of Quilts: The Colonial Williamsburg Collection, p. 103, c. 1840 
  • National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Achsah Goodwin Wilkins's Appliquéd Counterpane, ID Number 1995.0011.01, 180-1840 
  • Ardis and Robert James Collection, International Quilt Museum, Bars and Flying Geese Chintz Quilt, Object Number 1997.007.0486, c 1830-1850 
  • Ardis and Robert James Collection, International Quilt Museum, Queen Victoria Medallion Quilt, Object Number 1997.007.0479, dated 1843 and 1844 
  • Ardis and Robert James Collection, International Quilt Museum, Album Quilt Made by the Freehold Baptist Church Members, Object Number 1997.007.0441, dated 1852 
  • Philadelphia Museum of Art, Sarah Flickwir Quilt, Object Number 1952-63-1, dated 1841-1846 
  • Virginia Quilt Museum, Jane Weakley Leche Chintz Center Medallion Quilt, Object Number 1991.004.001, c. 1825 
  • Daughters of the American Revolution Museum, Framed Center Medallion Counterpane, Object Number 3788, c. 1840-1850 
  • American Folk Art Museum, Sarah Morrell Quilt, Object Number 1986.16.1, dated 1843 
  • Private Collection of Joyce Fullerton Smith, Harriet Miller Shinn Quilt, Uncoverings 2018, vol. 39, p.84, block 6A, dated 1840-1842  

Also see Barbara Brackman’s Material Culture Blog for September 9, 2018 (https://barbarabrackman.blogspot.com/2018/09/dahlia-bouquet-chintz-another.html) for more examples and pictures. 


Chintz with this Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) motif: 
  • None known at this time

                                                        Additional Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) Motifs
Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) from the Ardis and Robert James Collection, International Quilt Museum, Album Quilt Made by Mary V. Yeadon, dated 1848-1849
Quilts with this Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) motif: 
  • Ardis and Robert James Collection, International Quilt Museum, Album Quilt Made by Mary V. Yeadon, Object Number 2006.003.0005, Chintz Appliqué: from Imitation to Icon, p. 7, Plate 18, dated 1848-1849

                                                             More Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) Motifs
                                                     
(No pictures available at this time)     


Quilts each with a different Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) motif: 
  • Shelburne Museum, Floral Chintz Album Bedcover Made by Members of the Townsend, Fuller, Pope, and Mikell Familes, Object Number 10-151 (1954-412), Art of the Needle: 100 Masterpiece Quilts from the Shelburne Museum, p. 19, dated 1850-1857
  • International Quilt Museum, Album Quilt, Object Number 1997.007.0654, A Flowering of Quilts, pp. 37-39, dated 1849, 1850, 1854

Chintz with a different Dahlia sp. (Dahlia) motif from those above:
  • National Archives, Kew, Furniture Print Made by John Watson & Son, drapers and furniture printers of Holborn Hill, London, Printed Textiles: British and American Cottons and Linens 1700-1850, p. 35, registered in 1848 





   ©  Updated 9/20/2020    Author: Terry Terrell