Images(2)

Bed Valance

Date1768 to 1785

Maker John Munns

OriginEngland, Crayford

MediumCotton

DimensionsOL: 83" OW: 10"

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1990-224,3

DescriptionBed valance of red on white copperplate-printed cotton in a design that includes flowers and fruit. The valance is shaped with straight angled ends and a slightly undulating lower edge. It is trimmed on all sides with block-printed cotton in an undulating narrow floral stripe pattern.
Label TextThis valance is part of a set of bed hangings intended to fully enclose a tall-post bedstead. The valance is one of three to survive, along with one curtain from the set. The complete printed design consists of roses and piles of fruit angling across the surface and enclosing the following scenes: a domed temple with human figures; a shipping scene with columns and an arch, boats, packages on a dock, and a turbaned man in Turkish dress greeting a man in European dress; and a shepherd with crook and sheep in a rocky landscape.

The textile was printed by John Munns of Crayford, England.