Tablecloth
- Object Name:
- Tablecloth
- Object ID:
- 1972.020
- Date:
- circa 1803
- Description:
- Tablecloth. According to oral tradition, given to Elizabeth Kneeland (1780-1838) upon her marriage to Rev. Asa McFarland (1769-1827) of Concord, NH, in 1803, by Lieut. Gov. and Mrs. Samuel Phillips Jr. of Boston. White linen damask, woven with a central medallion design of a spread-winged eagle, with its head turned to the viewer's left and a shield across its body. The shield has fifteen vertical stripes. The eagle clutches fifteen arrows in its right talons and olive branch in left talons. Clasped in its beak is a banner bearing the motto "E PLURIBUS UNUM." The eagle is surrounded by a field of thirteen stars. The wide border design is filled with neoclassical foliate scrolls. At each corner is a profile of a helmeted man within an oval medallion surmounted by a double-handled urn. Inscribed in brown ink on a sewn-on label, "McFarland." Also inscribed in brown ink (now faded) on the back, "E. Kneeland's - from her esteemed friend Mrs. Phillips." The style of the eagle is consistent with designs used in coinage, painted signs, etc. prior to about 1840. (See: Susan Schoelwer, Lions and Eagles and Bulls...) The woven design of the damask is very fashionable for the early 19th century, and it is this cataloger's opinion that the provenance is accurate.
- Material:
- Textile
Linen - Dimensions:
- W-86.25 L-128.25 inches
- Provenance:
- According to a note that was pinned to the tablecloth, it was given to Elizabeth Kneeland by "her friends Gov. and Mrs. Phillips of Boston," upon her marriage to the Rev. Asa McFarland, third pastor of the First Congregational Church in Concord, NH, on Sept. 5, 1803. [Note is now in accession file, 03/23/2012.] The donor is fourth generation of McFarlands.
- Credit Line:
- Gift of Katherine McFarland Swenson
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