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Indian or Portuguese, Portugal

Marriage Quilt (Colcha), 1700s

Description

Maker

Culture

Indian

Title

Marriage Quilt (Colcha)

Year

1700s

Medium

Silk plain weave with silk chain-stitch embroidery

Materials/Techniques

Materials

Techniques

Dimensions

Length: 271.8 cm (107 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

On back, sewn to lining: Tag reading: Ministerio da Educacao Nacional; Inv. no. 31 c.v.

Place

Portugal

Type

Credit

Jesse Metcalf Fund

Object Number

1996.99

About

After Portugal established a colonial trade center in Goa, India, in the early 1500s, it was flooded with imported Indian luxury textiles. Painstakingly embroidered with carnations and vines, this marriage quilt, or colcha, was either made in India for the Portuguese market or crafted in Portugal as a version of an Indian original. The makers substituted the carnation—a flower from the Mediterranean—for the lotus-blossom motif that would have been more familiar to Asian consumers.

Colcha were indispensable items for Portuguese brides of all social classes. Greatly elegant, this coverlet was made in silk instead of the more commonly used linen

On back, sewn to lining: Tag reading: Ministerio da Educacao Nacional; Inv. no. 31 c.v.

Portugal
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Exhibition History

Exhibition History

“Insnared with flowers, I fall on grass"

June 10, 2014 - March 8, 2015

With the establishment of its colonial trade center in Goa, India, in the early 16th century, Portugal was flooded with imported Indian luxury textiles, which left a distinct mark on furnishings such as this marriage quilt, or colcha. Abounding with painstakingly embroidered carnations and scrolling vines on a silk ground, it was either made in India for the Portuguese market or crafted in Portugal as a version of the Indian originals. The artisans who made this piece substituted the carnation—a flower indigenous to the Mediterranean—for a lotus-blossom motif that would have been more familiar to the Asian market.

Recent Acquisitions

February 18 - April 16, 2000

Once in a while, the Museum has the opportunity to purchase a masterpiece of great beauty. This 18th-century quilt, embroidered by women either in Portugal or in India for the Portuguese market, is just such an object. Quilts had been popular in Portugal since the 16th century, but the 18th century was the "golden age" of these embroideries. They were indispensable items in a bride's trousseau at all social levels, and examples exist from both rural and urban Portugal. This coverlet is of great elegance, made in silk instead of the more commonly used linen.

RISD's quilt is especially important because its source is known: it came from the collection of Portuguese Comandante Ernesto Vilhena, which was formed in the mid-20th century and sold in 1995. Several colchas from this collection are in the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga in Lisbon, Portugal. In addition to its beauty, the coverlet gives an insight into the lives of Portuguese women in the 18th century, whose descendents are numerous in our own community today.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Marriage Quilt (Colcha) with the accession number of 1996.99. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.