Sarah Morrell Album Quilt

 In her 2001 publication The Art of the Quilt, Ruth Marler writes:

"This quilt is made of cotton with signatures of ink with cotton embroidery, and bears the name "Sarah Morrell" in the center medallion. The combination of the central medallion with pieced blocks and a saw-tooth border on three sides of the quilt all corroborate the assumed date of this piece, around 1843. Fifty-eight people, both male and female, signed the quilt but as yet no definite ties have been established between the signatories. This quilt is predominantly red and white with each block different. However, despite the wide range of blocks incorporated, the overall design is well balanced with pieced blocks alternating with those of cut-out chintz. The use of a double saw-tooth border around the central medallion and around the majority of the pieced blocks serves to link the main part of the quilt with what was originally a red saw-tooth border."

The original quilt is height 93 1/4" width 95 1/4".
It was a gift of Jeremy L. Banta, 1986.