American Quilts and Coverlets in The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Newly Available from Yale

 

This handsome book showcases the Metropolitan Museum’s superb collection of 151 American quilts and coverlets. First published in 1990 and revised in 2007 to feature 32 new acquisitions and updated scholarship, this volume chronicles the development of quilt and coverlet production in the United States from the 18th through the 20th centuries, provides a glimpse into the lives of the makers and recipients of these pieces, and discusses their emergence as works of art.

 

Notable pieces include the Phebe Warner and the Baltimore Presentation coverlets, Amish, Crazy, and Honeycomb quilts that exemplify achievement in abstract and geometric patterns, along with the Adeline Harris Sears Autograph Quilt, a memorial to the greatest politicians, composers, authors, and thinkers of the mid-19th century. Each work is catalogued with a description and essential information on materials, condition, publications, and references. Also included is an illustrated survey of materials and techniques used in the creation of these works.