Antique c. 1920 Hand-Pieced Indigo & Pink Diamond-in-Square Quilt

An antique hand-pieced and machine-stitched quilt dating to circa 1920, worked in a diamond-in-square (sometimes called Economy Block or Square-in-Square) pattern set on point. The field alternates indigo blue solid triangles with cream squares centered by smaller diamonds cut from striped shirting and ticking-style cottons in black, purple, and tan. The setting triangles and outer border are pieced from a pink-and-red printed cotton with a fine repeating dot-and-dash motif, characteristic of late-19th and early-20th-century American shirting prints.

Construction shows the transitional hand of its era — patchwork assembled by hand with visible running stitches outlining each block, and seams reinforced by machine. The reverse is faced in a single muslin printed with a tiny scattered floret in faded blue and red. A working quilt of modest origin, likely Midwestern or Mid-Atlantic, the piece reads as a careful scrap-bag exercise in geometry and contrast. Identified in the consignor's inventory ledger as "Antique quilt — 1920 blue/pink."

CONDITION

Good with age-appropriate wear. Light overall toning and soft creasing throughout from long folded storage. Scattered minor soiling and a few faint spots; piecing and quilting remain intact with no significant losses observed.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

• Overall: 70" × 70"
• Construction: Hand-pieced, machine-stitched
• Pattern: Diamond-in-Square (Economy Block), set on point
• Materials: Cotton patchwork; printed cotton backing
• Era: circa 1920