CURRANT blue

Repeat: 19,5 x 23 cm. Width 145cm

The original is a lining of a quilted bed cover, which is kept in the collection of Linnaeus’ Hammarby, owned by Uppsala University Art Collections. The lining is an open weave cotton with block print in brown and red. The pattern consists of white sprigs with flowers and berries in white and red on brown ground.

The print could be dated to the middle of the 18th century and might be Swedish. The fabric is woven from hand spun, quite uneven cotton thread. This open weave quality was intended for linings. The design, however, is of a type that was used both for clothing and furnishing in the mid 18th century.