Diamond Mosaic Coverlet

Maker:

Dennis Cann Family

Date:

1840 - 1860

This coverlet is made from diamonds of multicoloured and patterned printed cottons, with an outside border of triangles and corner star blocks. It is thought to have been made by one of Mary Dennis Cann's daughters, and the design is similar to that of the Mariner's Compass, which was made by Mary. However the stitching is not quite as accurate, and the design does not incorporate a complicated central motif, so it has been suggested that this is the work of one of the daughters rather than Mary herself.

Mary, a farmer's daughter from Devonshire, married Richard Cann in 1828 and they had six daughters; Annie, Jane, Elizabeth, Fanny, Mary and Margaret, and one son, John. Unfortunately, Richard died of Typhoid Fever in 1842, leaving Mary and her children no choice but to leave their farm and move to Hartland village where they ran a drapers and grocery shop. Mary stayed running the shop for the next 50 years before her death at the age of 92 in 1891.

This quilt is one of five in the Collection from the Dennis/Cann family, and it is presumed that the other four quilts were made by Mary and/or her daughters, four of whom remained at home and helped Mary run the shop. Two of the quilts, are cot quilts, presumably made for Charles Tottenham, the son of the only daughter that married.

For the other Dennis/Cann family quilts, please see: Silk Triangles Coverlet, Squares Re-covered Cot Quilt, Double-sided Cot Quilt and Mariner's Compass Coverlet.

224cm x 267cm