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Curtains (4) and textile fragments (4)

Curtains (4) and textile fragments (4)
Object name 
Curtains (4) and textile fragments (4)
Date 
1790-1800
Medium 
Cotton, linen
Description 
Four cotton copper-engraved curtains and four related textile fragments with the apotheosis of Benjamin Franklin depicted in red on white ground; additional figures include a personification of liberty standing next to Franklin and a female warrior holding a shield with thirteen stars floating in the air on his opposite side, George Washington standing upright in a chariot drawn by a pair of leopards and led by two Native Americans blowing trumpets and waving banners, and a pair of cupids holding between them an oval map showing the Atlantic Ocean and the eastern half of North America; curtains with linen lining.
Credit Line 
Gift of Mrs. J. Insley Blair
Object Number 
1941.99a-h
Marks 
printed: on banner held by Franklin: WHERE LIBERTY / DWELLS THERE IS / MY COUNTRY" printed: on temple frieze: "TEMPLE OF FAME" printed: on shield held by allegorical figure seated next to Washington: "AMERICAN / INDEPEND- / -ANCE. / 1776"
Gallery Label 
Three fragments (e, f, and g) are joined together and attached to another fragment of the same pattern (1937.514) to make a complete curtain.
Due to ongoing research, information about this object is subject to change.