Domestic Furnishings - Overview
Washboards, armchairs, lamps, and pots and pans may not seem to be museum pieces. But they are invaluable evidence of how most people lived day to day, last week or three centuries ago. The Museum's collections of domestic furnishings comprise more than 40,000 artifacts from American households. Large and small, they include four houses, roughly 800 pieces of furniture, fireplace equipment, spinning wheels, ceramics and glass, family portraits, and much more.
The Arthur and Edna Greenwood Collection contains more than 2,000 objects from New England households from colonial times to mid-1800s. From kitchens of the past, the collections hold some 3,300 artifacts, ranging from refrigerators to spatulas. The lighting devices alone number roughly 3,000 lamps, candleholders, and lanterns.
"Domestic Furnishings - Overview" showing 2 items.
1784 Overshot Coverlet
- Description
- The weaver and original owner of this very complex, well worn, single-woven, linen, cotton and wool, overshot coverlet, dated 1784, are unknown. The letters “E M” and the date are woven into the coverlet on the lower right hand side, using a hand technique. We do not know if
- “E M” stands for name of the owner or the weaver. In the 18th century it was not unusual for textiles to be marked with the initials of the owner, but it was usually done with embroidery. The initials identified the coverlet as the woman's property. Women could own and inherit "moveable" property.
- The overall patterns used in this coverlet are “Rose” and “Tables,” and there are two shades of indigo blue used in a band effect. The coverlet was woven in two sections, and then sewn together. The original size of the sections and the coverlet as a whole are unknown, as there are no original edges present. This coverlet was found in Massachusetts. In the18th century, a young woman might commission the weaving of a coverlet or receive one as a gift, and put it in her dowry (hope chest) saving it for use after marriage.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1784
- maker
- unknown
- ID Number
- 1979.0723.1
- accession number
- 1979.0723
- catalog number
- 1979.0723.1
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Overshot Coverlet 1787
- Description
- The date 1787 and the letters “M S” are woven into a corner of this cotton, linen, and wool, single-woven overshot coverlet. The center seam indicates the coverlet was woven in two sections that were sewn together. One section is an inch smaller than the other. The pattern could be a variation of “Kings Flower” pattern or “Roses and Tables.” This Coverlet was found in New York State. It is not known if “M S” are the initials of the weaver or the owner, both of whom are unknown. In the 18th century, household textiles were prized possessions, and it was not unusual for them to be marked with the owner’s initials and the date. However, the marking was usually done with embroidery.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1787
- maker
- unknown
- ID Number
- 1979.0723.2
- accession number
- 1979.0723
- catalog number
- 1979.0723.2
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center