r loom, but each night
secretly ravelled out the product of her day's labour. By this
stratagem Penelope restrained the crowd of ardent suitors up to the
very day of Ulysses' return.

CHAPTER II

PATCHWORK AND QUILTING DURING THE MIDDLE AGES

In the early days of Christianity the various organizations of the
mother church took a deep interest in all the textile arts, and we are
indebted to the ecclesiastical orders for what progress was made in
needlework during the beginning of the Middle Ages. The makers of
church hangings and vestments were stimulated by thoughts of the
spiritual blessings with which they were assured their work would be
rewarded. Much of this early ecclesiastic needlework is extremely
elaborate and was always eagerly desired by the holy orders. At one
time the craze for gorgeous vestments reached such an extreme that we
have record of one worthy bishop chiding his priests because they
"carried their religion on their backs instead of in their hearts."

[Illustration: MODERN EGYPTIAN PATCHWORK

Panels for wall decoration]

[Illustration: DOUBLE NINE PATCH

Made in Ohio in 1808. Colours: blue and white, and
beautifully quilted]

The artistic needlework of the Christian era consists almost
entirely of embroidery; no positive reference to patchwork or quilting
being found in western Europe prior to the time of the Crusades. But
with this great movement, thousands of the most intelligent men in
Europe, urged by religious enthusiasm combined with love of adventure,
forced their way into eastern countries whose culture and refinements
of living far surpassed their own. The luxuries which they found in
Syria were eagerly seized and carried home to all the western lands.
Returning Crusaders exhibited fine stuffs of every description that
roused the envy of all who obtained a glimpse of them. A vigorous
commerce with the east was immediately stimulated. From Syria
merchants brought into Italy, Spain, and France silks and cottons to
supplement the native linen and wool, and also many kinds of
embroidered work of a quality much finer than ever known before. As a
result dyeing, weaving, and needlework entered on an era of great
development.

Previous to the eleventh century so memorable in the history of the
Crusaders, references to quilting and patchwork are few and uncertain,
but from that time on these twin arts became more and more conspicuous
in the needlecraft of ne