After the American Revolution, English manufacturers started to produce textiles specifically for the American market. Patterns like this one, called the "Apotheosis of Benjamin Franklin and George Washington," would have had little commercial appeal in England. These printed textiles often were made into bed curtains and other household furnishings.

In these allegorical scenes, George Washington drives a leopard-drawn chariot, accompanied by the seated female figure representing America. She holds a plaque inscribed "AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE 1776." Benjamin Franklin, wearing his trademark fur cap, stands next to the figure of Liberty. The scroll above Franklin’s head reads "WHERE LIBERTY DWELLS THERE IS MY COUNTRY." Nearby, the trumpeting figure of Fame heralds the heroes’ renown.

The figure of George Washington was adapted from a painting by John Trumbull, later engraved in England by Valentine Green in 1781. The image of Benjamin Franklin’s head was adapted from a 1777 medallion by Giovanni Battista Nini (see B.58.122), after an original drawing by Thomas Walpole. The image was sold as medallions and engravings on paper.