Baltimore Album Quilt Sells for $58,000by Patricia Cummings
Center block features an eagle
that carries an Rarely does Table of Contents
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[Antique Designs] [Pat's Books] [About Pat] [Baltimore Album] [Book, Pattern and Product Reviews] [Embroidery articles] [Free Patterns] [Natural World] [Historical articles] [Home of The Brave] [Hispanic Section] [International Artists] [Links] [Meet the researcher] [Musings] [Quilting articles] [Travel] [Recipes] [Poetry] [Photo gallery of Quilts I] [Photo gallery of embroidery I] [Readers Corner] [Site Map and Site Search] [Pat's Blog] [Song Playlist] a Baltimore Album quilt come up for auction, and when one is offered, there is bound to be a lot of excitement, especially by aficionados of this specific mid-nineteenth century quilt genre. Such was the case in February 2006 when Northeast Auctions advertised a 106” x 108” unfinished quilt with twenty-five appliqué blocks, as well as, elaborate appliquéd floral borders, the work of an expert needlewoman. The original owner of the quilt is believed to have been Elizabeth MacCullough (married name: Hervey), born in 1822. The fact that the quilt is not finished does not detract from the enjoyment of seeing its beautiful workmanship. Apparently, this treasure's new owner agrees, as he/she willingly paid $58,000. for the quilt. The pre-auction photo of the quilt can be seen on the website of the auctioneer: http://www.northeastauctions.com/auctions/past.html Pre-Auction Photos Allowed
After learning that the quilt could be viewed prior to the auction, Jeanne and John Glenfield of Bedford, New Hampshire trekked to Portsmouth, New Hampshire to see this magnificent beauty firsthand. As a quilter herself, Jeanne has a special interest in Baltimore Album quilts, and has studied at Elly Sienkiewicz's Appliqué Academy, a yearly event. After receiving permission to take photos, John went to work. Courtesy of Jeanne and John, those photos are shared here with you. (Thank you so much!) Baltimore Album Quilt-picture of the whole quilt top. Overall View Stunning In the overall photo that was published before the auction, one could see that all of the blocks are the same size (approximately 18") and they connect with each other directly, with no additional separations of sashings, or other plain, alternate, blocks. There are four floral borders. Cornucopias
The Clipper ships are detailed, as well, one in particular with its inkings on the sails and porticos, its customary four flags, and the way in which the blue ombre fabric was cut to create "waves" underneath the boat, in the photo to the right. Please click on any image to see a much larger view. Use your "back" button on your browser to return to this page.
Like other Baltimore Album quilts, the MacCullough quilt includes floral wreaths, two Clipper ships, baskets of flowers, a bird carrying an "Album," a peace dove bearing an olive branch, and three pictorial scenes of a hunter, a young couple, and two soldiers flanking a tent. Delightful Pictorial Scenes Offer Detailed Figures
Tent Blocks
Photo of the Russell quilt taken at the Baltimore Museum of Art Please click on image for a larger view.
The same style of tent appears in Baltimore Album Quilts (117), but in that design there are no soldiers, just Masonic symbols. That quilt was made for Captain George R. Russell in 1852 and is owned by the Baltimore Museum of Art.
A Baltimore Album Block from the MacCullough-Hervey Quilt A similar block that contains a tent shape, flanked by two flags, a soldier on either side of the tent, and an
ombre eagle hovering overhead can be seen in the book, Lavish Legacies by
Jennifer Faulds Goldsborough, Maryland Historical Society, 1994), Eagle
This same eagle design with a flag, union shield, and partial swag of roses, shows up in other Baltimore Album Quilts, as seen in other sources. A similar eagle block and a similar hunter pictorial scene appear on the surface of a Baltimore Album quilt dated 1847-1850, “makers unidentified,” in the book, Baltimore Album Quilts by Dena S. Katzenberg (The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1981), 99, in a quilt owned privately in Maryland. Mary Simon, Designer The red baskets, created with the use of thin, bias strips, are commonly seen on Baltimore Album quilts. There are compelling reasons to agree that the designs seen in the MacCullough quilt can be attributed to designer, Mary Simon. One of her trademarks is the use of the tied, blue, ribbon bow. An example of that can be seen atop a floral basket. There are two baskets that are alike in that they are both red, and they both have square shapes on each side.
The similarities end there, however, as they are not the same size, nor of the exact same configuration. One adds the color yellow-green, as a base, and one basket is smaller than the other. Yet the two baskets are juxtaposed in the center of the quilt, on either side of the eagle block. On left above, is a typical blue ribbon bow, indicative of the work of Mary Simon. On the right is a floral wreath with white roses, a feature previously attributed to Mary Evans. Quilt is Nicely Viewed From Any Angle Like many quilts of this type, the quilt that features the blocks shown here, plus additional blocks, can be enjoyed from any angle, “even diagonally,” as pointed out by the editors of Maine Antique Digest, the newspaper that advertised this piece. The quilt is certainly very “lush” with design elements, and intricate details.
Quilt is Charming The MacCullough quilt is nothing short of charming as you can see in the close-up photos. Notice the inking for the stamens and rose adornments. Look at how the quilter isolated portions of fabric to make them “work” well as leaves. Especially, see the Chintz fabric that was cut up in such a precise manner so as to create “believeable” roses. Examine the details on the clothing. All of the design components work well together and bespeak fine workmanship.
Also, take note of the many white, roses throughout the composition. The choice of white roses was, at one time, thought to have been designed by Mary Evans, although in light of more recent information, that view may have changed, with credit being awarded instead to Mary Simon. The white, gauze-like, white cloth is so thin as to be transparent. The fine details on the “tent block” are amazing! The quilter has placed overlapping circles, in a triadic color combination of yellow, red, and blue, into a circular layout that confines the design elements. She has added intricate facial features for the soldiers, and other small motifs that add interest to the block. Every block in this quilt is exquisite and a true inspiration! Above, the beige basket block has two ever-so-cool birds, of a kind and coloration that we would never see in real life. Quiltmaking is fantasy land and anything goes! The body of the pineapple appears to have been inked. Some of the leaves are divided, featuring two different colors: yellow and brown. Provenance
Link to our First Article on this Subject The heyday of these quilts lasted from approximately 1842-1855. To read more about the history of Baltimore Album quilts, as a general overview, please see my previous article: http://www.quiltersmuse.com/baltimore_album_quilts.htm Stamped Mark Also, there is a curious mark on the back of the quilt that is stamped onto the plain muslin fabric. It says simply, “Waltham Finish.” Corner border of the quilt History The more we find out, the more we want to discover. With current interest in quilt history, we are learning more all the time. In 2006, Uncoverings, a publication of the American Quilt Study Group, (free with membership) feature a research paper that has information about Jewish women who made Baltimore Album quilts in the mid-nineteenth century. American Quilt Study Group: http://www.h-net.org/~aqsg/ NOTICE: After three online articles about Baltimore Album quilts were published by Patricia Cummings, a note was received from researcher, Ronda Harrell McAllen. McAllen states that written genealogical information about Mary Simon found in books by other noted authors is incorrect. They apparently relied upon previous written reports when preparing their manuscripts and overlooked the need to check primary source documents. At the October 2006 seminar of the American Quilt Study Group, held at Farmington, Connecticut, McAllen presented new information via her research paper entitled, "Jewish Baltimore Album Quilts." McAllen is currently seeking certification as a professional genealogist from the Board of Certified Genealogists. She has located documents, related to Mary Simon and her family, that date back to seventeenth century Germany. Her findings are now published in "Uncoverings," the journal of the American Quilt Study Group. An Autumn Wreath with Acorns and Lovebirds
June 22, 2006 - Click on the blue link below to see Credits Photos formatted by James Cummings We would like to thank John and Jeanne Glenfield for providing the photos for this article. A photo is worth more than a thousand words! An additional photo in this file is shown here, courtesy of Barbara Burnham We would also like
to than Ronald Bourgeault, LLC., of Northeast Auctions for granting
permission for the Glenfields to photograph the quilt. We hope that you have enjoyed this special feature brought to you by Quilter's Muse Publications on June 21, 2006. Site Map for Quilter's Muse Website Please do not publish any of this material on any other website, or in any other venue, without written permission. Thank you.
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