Floral Motifs on Early Chintz
Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium - Scottish Thistle
Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) from Victoria & Albert Museum, Fabric Fragment with Birds from Audubon Birds of America, Butterflies, Berries, and Flowers, made 1831
Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) from Weinmann, J.W., Phytanthoza iconographia, vol. 2, plate 311, fig. a, 1739
Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) growing in a modern field.
Common Names for Cirsium vulgare (Scottish Thistle): Scottish Thistle, Spear Thistle, Bull Thistle, Common Thistle 
 
Common Names for Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle): Scottish Thistle, Scots Thistle, Scotch Thistle, Scotch Cotton Thistle, Cotton Thistle, Heraldic Thistle, Woolly Thistle 
 
Description: Cirsium vulgare and Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) are a members of the Aster Family (Asteraceae). There is currently considerable debate which of these two distinctive thistles represent the historical symbol of Scottish Kings or of Scotland itself. The Hortus Kewensis, ed. 2, vol. 4 recorded that both were native to Britain (with Cirsium vulgare then listed as Cnicus lanceolatus).

Chintzes with this Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) motif: 
 
  • Victoria & Albert Museum, Fabric Fragment with Birds from Audubon Birds of America, Butterflies, Berries, and Flowers, Object Number CIRC.292-1956, made 1831. 
  • The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Manganese Bronze and Prussian Blue Fabric Fragment by John Potts, Museum Object No. 1959.0084.056, 1826-1836 


                  More Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) Motifs  
Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) on the Victoria & Albert Museum, George III Commemorative Panel Bed Cover, c. 1810
Quilts with this Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) motif: 
 
  • Victoria & Albert Museum, George III Commemorative Panel Bed Cover, Object Number T.25-1961, c. 1810 
 
Chintz with this Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) motif: 
 
  • Panel 24 in Appendix II of Merikay Waldvogel, "Printed Panels for Chintz Quilts: Their Origin and Use," Uncoverings 34 (2013): 125 
             Additional Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) Motifs

                                                                 ( No pictures available at this time)


Each of the following quilts has a different Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) motif: 
 
  • Shelburne Museum, Appliqued Quilt Top, Octagonal Pattern with Figures, Made by a member of the Spaulding Family, Enduring Grace: Quilts from the Shelburne Museum Collection, p. 47, Object Number 1957-533 (10-242), 1782-1800 
  • The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Bird and Thistle Copperplate Print Wholecloth Quilt, Museum Object No. 1969.3885, 1800-1830 
  • Charleston Museum, Chintz Applique Quilt, Object Number 1988.16.1, c. 1830 

Each of the following chintzes has a different Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) motif: 

  • The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Roses and and Thistles Fabric Fragment, Museum Object No. 1969.3140, 1805-1825 
  • The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Coronation of Queen Victoria at Westminster Abbey Fabric Fragment, Museum Object No. 2006.0016, 1837
  • The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Roses, Shamrocks, and Thistle Fabric Panel, Museum Object No. 1969.0175.001, 1825-1830

Both this quilt and chintz have the same Cirsium vulgare or Onopordum acanthium (Scottish Thistle) motif: 
 
  • Victoria & Albert Museum, Wellington Commemorative Panel Bed Cover and Border, Object Number T.428&A-1985, dated 1829
  • Panel 26 in Appendix II of Merikay Waldvogel, "Printed Panels for Chintz Quilts: Their Origin and Use," Uncoverings 34 (2013): 125



©  Updated 12/1/2019     Author: Terry Terrell