Hanging, Bed

Object Name:

Hanging, Bed

Object ID:

1975.037.01 b

Date:

1780-1840

Description:

Bed valance--side piece, late 1700's. Red monochorme printed on linen. Subject: Mythological scenes, including the goddess Minerva with attributes of temple and owl, obelisk and putti. Braid bound edges; lined with linen. 76 " long (78" at lower edge) 14" deep.

Valance for the side of a bed, constructed of three sections of the same red-on-white copperplate-printed cotton/linen (linen warp, weft) "toile." This valance matches valance 1975.037.01a, which also shows cherubs floating on clouds; one cherub holds a basket of flowers on his head, the other holds a string attached to what is probably a bird (tail feathers are visible, but the rest is cut off). To the right, an owl sits in a tree. Across the bottom are the tops of classical monuments which correspond to the part of the printed pattern seen in bed skirt 1975.037.02. The valance is backed with plain-woven linen and bound with a 19th-century manufactured cotton tape. A strip of linen is stitched across the top to act as a tacking strip. This valance, like the other pieces of this set, was constructed probably in the 1830s or later from an 18th-century plate printed textile. The reuse of an earlier textile is also seen in the fact that the panels which make up the valance are unevenly faded from one to the next.

Material:

Textile
Linen

Dimensions:

W-14 L-78 inches

Credit Line:

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John F. Page