$652
Seven Pennsylvania embroidered show towels , to include an example inscribed Maria Ebersohl 1841 and another inscribed Catarina Gantz 1841 . Show towels were known in the period as Handtuch or hand towels and were made by young women for decoration rather than use. These long, narrow panels were hung on a door to ornament a room and were a tradition brought over from the Palatinate by German-speaking immigrants. The majority were made by young Schwenkfelder and Mennonite women in Montgomery, Lancaster, and Lebanon Counties. Plainer examples were also made by conservative "White Top" or "Nebraska" Amish women in the Big Valley (also known as Kishacoquillas Valley) of Mifflin County, Pennsylvania from the mid-1800s until well into the 1900s. This Amish community also produced another rare type of embroidered textile, known as a Kelleduch or implement cloth, which was hung on the wall behind the cooking utensils to protect the wall from dirt and grease.
Auctioneer:
Pook & Pook
Date:
2013-01-12
