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Design
Elizabeth Kennard’s pale print does not overshadow the beautiful and skillful quilting, producing an elegant and refined simplicity.
Maker
Elizabeth Willis married the widowed Samuel Kennard in 1838, shortly before she turned thirty. Willis may have made this quilt for her wedding, or some years earlier. Young women commonly prepared linens, from tablecloths and towels to fine quilts, in anticipation of marriage.
Material
Roller-printed and solid cottons; cotton filling, backing, and binding
The pale color and small scale of the roller-printed cotton reflect the later years of the neoclassical style, which favored a restrained palette.