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2025.609.7, Quilt
Quilt, Appliqued Pomegranate Design
2025.609.7, Quilt

Quilt, Appliqued Pomegranate Design

Date1870-1885
OriginAmerica, Mississippi, Claiborne County
MediumCotton, wool (batting)
Dimensions82 x 82 in.
Credit LineGift of The Children of Elizabeth Shaifer Hollingsworth - Allison Shaifer Hollingsworth Moxey, Ann Davidson Hollingsworth Weeden and Christopher Alton Hollingsworth, and The Children of Sanfrid Davidson Shaifer - Mary Laura Shaifer Bell, Jodie Stovall Shaifer Huddleston and Sanfrid Davidson Shaifer, Jr.
Object number2025.609.7
DescriptionSquare quilt of red, green, and yellow on off-white ground. The quilt is appliqued with four large three-branch pomegranate sprays growing inward on curving stems from the four corners and ending with four pomegranates at the center. A border on four sides has meandering green stem and leaves. The white ground is quilted in 5 to 6 running stitches per inch in a design that includes an eight-petal flower in the center and four-part flowers, spiraling stems, leaves, and lines around the appliqued motifs in the main field. Straight-line quilting is used in the borders. Edges are finished by turning the front to the back and stitching down by hand using bias binding tape to reinforce or cover raw edges. The batting is wool and the backing white cotton.Label TextThis quilt is part of a large donation of quilts by the Shaifer family of Claiborne County, MS. These 46 quilts were made by women from four successive generations of the family, dating from the mid-1800s to the 1980s.

This example is one of the earliest attributed to the family, made by Amanda Guice (1843-1930), the second wife of Abram Keller "Kell" Shaifer (1833-1921). Guice was described by a great-grandson as "a strikingly handsome woman, taller than her husband...and most memorable of all, a truly remarkable voice." She was known as an avid quilter, often stitching alongside friends and neighbors. She appears to have preferred pieced quilts, but experimented with other styles- like applique, as seen in this example.Provenance1870-1885, Amanda Guice (Mrs. Abram K. “Kell”) Shaifer [1844-1930] (Claiborne County, MS); dates unknown, descended in the family to her great-granddaughter Elizabeth Shaifer (Mrs. Al) Hollingsworth [1933-2016] (Claiborne County, MS); dates unknown, Al Hollingsworth (Claiborne County, MS); 2025, given to Colonial Williamsburg Foundation (Williamsburg, VA)