Star of Bethlehem with Star Border Quilt1840–1860Frame Dimension: 90 3/4 × 90 1/2"CottonGift of Cyril Irwin Nelson in honor of Robert Bishop, American Folk Art Museum director (1977-1991)1990.17.30Applied binding whipstitched to top. Border: within stars, echo outline, background double diamond and square grid; sawtooth inner border, echo outline; field: star, echo outline, setting blocks and triangles, double diamond and double square grid.152525444Artist unidentifiedTextilesThe American Folk Art Museum believes this work to be in the public domain. United StatesTextilesApplied binding whipstitched to top. Border: within stars, echo outline, background double diamond and square grid; sawtooth inner border, echo outline; field: star, echo outline, setting blocks and triangles, double diamond and double square grid.starspiecedTEXTILEPerhaps the visually most exciting star quilts—and the most technically challenging—are those that feature a single large star blazing across the expanse of the textile. These textiles are almost always constructed of equilateral diamond-shape patches whose points converge at the center and then radiate in concentric rings. Precision in the cutting and assembling of the diamond patches is essential to the success of this type of quilt, which goes by several different names, depending on nuances in the use of color and fabric, composition, and size. The Star of Bethlehem is constructed in the same fashion as the Lone Star, but the quilt top might feature several stars rather than just one, and they may be of varying sizes.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Star of Bethlehem with Star Border Quilt," exhibition label for SUPER STARS: Quilts from the American Folk Art Museum. Stacy C. Hollander, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2010.18401860 1990 17 3 Applied binding whipstitched to top. Border: within stars, echo outline, background double diamond and square grid; sawtooth inner border, echo outline; field: star, echo outline, setting blocks and triangles, double diamond and double square grid.starspiecedTEXTILEPerhaps the visually most exciting star quilts—and the most technically challenging—are those that feature a single large star blazing across the expanse of the textile. These textiles are almost always constructed of equilateral diamond-shape patches whose points converge at the center and then radiate in concentric rings. Precision in the cutting and assembling of the diamond patches is essential to the success of this type of quilt, which goes by several different names, depending on nuances in the use of color and fabric, composition, and size. The Star of Bethlehem is constructed in the same fashion as the Lone Star, but the quilt top might feature several stars rather than just one, and they may be of varying sizes.
Stacy C. Hollander, "Star of Bethlehem with Star Border Quilt," exhibition label for SUPER STARS: Quilts from the American Folk Art Museum. Stacy C. Hollander, curator. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2010.