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Woven Doublecloth Coverlet, "United We Stand"
No image number on slide

Woven Doublecloth Coverlet, "United We Stand"

Date1846 (dated)
Artist/Maker James Cunningham (ca. 1797?)
OriginAmerica, New York, New Hartford
MediumBlue wool with natural cotton
Dimensions88 1/4" x 72 3/4" (224.2 cm. x 184.8 cm.)
Credit LineGift of an Anonymous Donor
Object number1982.609.2
DescriptionThis is a blue wool and natural cotton double-woven jacquard coverlet with center seam and no fringe. The field consists of four roughly circular medallions of abstract floral/foliage sprays, plus two smaller, roughly lozenge-shaped sprays at top, which are size modifications of the larger medallions, using part of the same pattern as for the larger medallions. The sprays are interspersed with repeat design of 4-petaled flower surrounded by 4 large leaves. Crosses "+" and xes "x" are scattered behind all.
The upper and lower borders consist of four spread eagles alternately reversing directions of heads; they have shield bodies, arrows and laurel branches in claws and appear over repeated inscription. The inscription repeated four times, backwards and forwards, along upper and lower borders is "UNDER THIS WE PROSPER." The lower border is over a diaper pattern, the upper over two lines. The side borders consist of five eagles, each, as before but of slightly different proportions than eagles in upper and lower borders. These borders have two abstract geometric designs of roughly triangular shape interjected between eagles on each side. Note that the side border eagles nearest top are "Siamese twins," i.e., double-headed and bodied and joined at center. The four corner blocks consist of a soldier (identified as George Washington in inscriptions) on prancing horse pointing with a sword. Behind the image of a soldier is a bird on a branch. In front of horse is a triangular mass terminating in a small soldier with rifle on his shoulder. For descriptive purposes, "upper" edge is interpreted as edge bearing owner's name, "lower" as edge bearing weaver's name.
Lower corner blocks state "WASHINGTON/J + CUNNINGHAM/WEAVER.N.HARTFORD/ ONEIDA Co.N.York" and upper blocks state "WASHINGTON/MARIA + M + PALMER." Within each of the four corner blocks is the inscription "1846/UNITED/WE /STAND/DIVIDED/WE/FALL."
Label TextJames Cunningham used stars and other patriotic images and phrases to embellish this bed coverlet. He included the words "United We Stand Divided We Fall" around the image of George Washington on horseback in the corners. "Under This We Prosper" is beneath a border of bald eagles, which were selected to be the national emblem in 1782.

A constellation of stars arches above each pair of eagles. In this instance, the number of stars does not indicate a date. When the coverlet was woven in 1846, twenty-eight states were in the union, yet only sixteen stars show in each grouping (Iowa, the twenty-ninth state was added at the end of December 1846). Cunningham selected the stars for design reasons, not to represent the states in the union.

InscribedLower corner blocks state "WASHINGTON/J + CUNNINGHAM/WEAVER.N.HARTFORD/ ONEIDA Co.N.York" and upper blocks state "WASHINGTON/MARIA + M + PALMER." Within each of the four corner blocks is "1846/UNITED/WE /STAND/DIVIDED/WE/FALL" and repeated four times, backwards and forwards, along upper and lower borders is "UNDER THIS WE PROSPER."
MarkingsLower corner blocks state "WASHINGTON/J + CUNNINGHAM/WEAVER.N.HARTFORD/ ONEIDA Co.N.York" and upper blocks state "WASHINGTON/MARIA + M + PALMER." Within each of the four corner blocks is "1846/UNITED/WE /STAND/DIVIDED/WE/FALL" and repeated four times, backwards and forwards, along upper and lower borders is "UNDER THIS WE PROSPER."
ProvenanceDonor purchased coverlet in 1961; coverlet had previously belonged to donor's great great aunt, Mrs. Theophilus Rogers Hyde (Jane Pelton Bardon) (b. Feb. 15, 1857; d. Mar. 10, 1925); born Brooklyn, N.Y.; died Chestnut Hill, Pa.