Technical notes and description: Tabby-weave wool face and back; wool filling; wool thread. The three-panel, plus partial widths, face of this quilt is of deep pink, probably imported, glazed, worsted fabric. It is patterned with quilting running stitches in creamish-gold thread that create a spreading Tree of Life center. From an inverted heart, with crosshatch filling, spring three vines: the middle vine moves up the center and branches off to fill the field with vines that curve downward to enclose bold flowers and leafy surrounds: the left and right vines curve downward on either side of the heart. An undulating leaf garland forms border at sides and bottom. Quilting stitches secure gold backing, wool filling, and face fabric. The panel has been notched to accommodate bed foot posts.

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.