By the time of the American Civil War, most coverlets were produced by power looms in a factory-like setting. Such production allowed for wide weaves that eliminated the need for a central seam. By the late 1860s artificial dyes (aniline) were in use, providing a whole new color palette.

Technical notes and description: Cotton warp and cotton and wool weft  Jacquard double-weave cloth. This red, blue, brown, and green coverlet boasts a central rectangular medallion framed by a wreath of flowers and supported in the four exterior corners by an eagle fronted by a shield and bow and arrows and holding an olive branch in its beak. The whole is bordered by a wide band of florals.

Book excerpt: David B. Warren, Michael K. Brown, Elizabeth Ann Coleman, and Emily Ballew Neff. American Decorative Arts and Paintings in the Bayou Bend Collection. Houston: Princeton Univ. Press, 1998.