About This Artwork

Printed and produced by Lancaster Prints
England, Lancashire, Lancaster

Panel, 1850s

Cotton, plain weave; engraved roller printed; glazed
544.8 x 60.7 cm (214 1/2 x 23 7/8 in.)
Warp repeat: 40.6 cm (16 in.)
Inscription (label on reverse): LANCASTER PRINTS. 47 Yds. / BORDERS FOR QUILTS, FURNITURE COVERINGS, & C.
Restricted gift of Mrs. Homer Dixon, 1958.762

Produced in England at the Lancaster Prints establishment in the mid-19th century, this Panel of butterflies was meant to be cut down the middle and used as borders for quilted bedcovers and furnishings. At a time when shoddy manufacturing characterized textile production in the wake of the Industrial Revolution, this richly colored and beautifully designed panel which was created by the newly invented technique of roller-printing, attests to the high standards of design and fabrication achieved at the Lancaster works.

Exhibition, Publication and Ownership Histories

Exhibition History

The Art Institute of Chicago, "Masterpieces of Western Textiles," January 25–March 2, 1969

The Art Institute of Chicago, Agnes Allerton Gallery, "Printed Fabrics from the Permanent Collection," August 8, 1981–January 31, 1982

The Art Institute of Chicago, Elizabeth F. Cheney and Agnes Allerton Textile Galleries, "European Textile Masterpieces from Coptic Times through the 19th Century," September 27, 1989–January 22, 1990

The Art Institute of Chicago, Elizabeth F. Cheney and Agnes Allerton Textile Galleries, "Textile Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago's Collection," February 17–May 2, 1993

Publication History

Christa Charlotte Mayer. Masterpieces of Western Textiles from The Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1969), p. 210, no. 166.

Ann V. Waterman. Surface Pattern Design: A Handbook of How to Create Decorative and Repeat Patterns for Designers and Students (New York: Hastings House Publishers, 1984), p. 90.




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