This mid-19th century American tri-color coverlet is a striking example of early American textile craftsmanship at the height of the Jacquard weaving era. Woven in red, blue, and white using a Jacquard loom, the coverlet features floral medallions throughout the field and a foliate border that showcases the intricate detail and artistry that defined coverlets of this era. The three-color palette — red, blue, and white — is the classic American tri-color combination that gave these coverlets their bold, confident visual authority.
Woven during the height of their popularity in the early to mid-1800s, American Jacquard coverlets represented the cutting edge of textile technology combined with the traditional domestic values of warmth, thrift, and beauty. The finest Pennsylvania examples are now collected as significant works of American folk art and domestic history.