Towel
1831
Elizabeth Bofgholder (American, active c. 1831) United States, Pennsylvania
United States
This towel displays traditional German motifs (such as a peacock and birds in a nest) in a symmetrical arrangement. Made in Pennsylvania Dutch and German communities, towels of this type were typically made by older women, as they are technically more difficult and elaborate to create than samplers. The height of towel production for purely decorative use occurred during the 1830s.
Linen, plain weaves; pieced; cut and drawn thread work embroidered with cotton and linen in overcast and darning stitches; pulled thread work with linen in loop stitches; embroidered with cotton in cross and darning stitches; warp fringe; tapes of linen, plain weave