Quilt No.982SB - Sheila Bruhn
Owner:
Sheila Bruhn
Location:
NSW Sydney
Maker
Maker:
Changi Prison Girl Guides
Made in
SINGAPORE Changi Prison
Date:
1941 - 1970
Description:
Quilt constructed of blocks of hexagons with 72 'flower' rosettes made from plain and printed cotton scraps. The centre of each rosette has the name of one of the Girl Guides embroidered on it. The one in the centre of the quilt has the Trefoil insignia outlined in satin stitch. The background is white hexagons. There is no padding and it is backed with white cotton. 1880 x 960mm
History:
The quilt was made by Girl Guides in Changi prison camp in 1942. Elizabeth Ennis, who started the project, took the quilt to Scotland with her when she left the camp in 1945 after the war ended. 'Trish' Ennis gave it to the present owner, Sheila Bruhn, in April 2001 and it is now with Sheila in Australia.
Story:
This Girl Guide quilt was put together by a group of girls in Changi Prison. The guide group was started by Elizabeth Ennis, an army nursing sister, with the help of a young Dutch girl, Trude van Roode. There were about 20 to 30 girls between 8 and 13 and they collected oddments of material in the camp. The girls' names are recorded on the quilt.
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"This is not a true quilt, but a pieced coverlet with a lining. The entire front face of the quilt is of pieced hexagonal and part hexagonal printed cotton patches. Pieces are joined with hand sewn over casting stitches of many different coloured cotton threads. The joining of the patches forms a 'daisy' pattern in some areas and in others it is random. The edge of the front face of the quilt carries a 40mm strip of cotton Chinoiserie which is then folded to the reverse of the quilt and becomes part of the lining. The template for the hexagon patches remains in many of the patches: writing paper and news print." [NGA]
The work is not padded "The lining at the edge of the quilt (for approx.175mm) is a plain weave fabric of a Chinoiserie design. The centre field of the lining is a rectangular panel of a twill weave brushed cotton fabric with a striped floral design." [NGA] 2215 x 2070mm
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2180 x 1830mm
2180 x 1830mm