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Thistle textile

Designer Designed by Tiffany & Wheeler American
Manufacturer Probably manufactured by Cheney Brothers American
ca. 1881
Not on view
The firm Tiffany & Wheeler was hired in 1880 to design several interiors of the luxury steam yacht Namouna, owned by newspaper publisher James Gordon Bennett Jr. These included the ship’s main “saloon,” or drawing room. Across the room’s portholes could be drawn—as described in a contemporary magazine article—“exquisite hangings, in which the interwoven thistle is wrought in silk and gold.” It is difficult to know whether the design of the Namouna’s damask is by Louis C. Tiffany (1848-1933) or Candace Wheeler (1827-1923). The highly regularized pattern relates to molded plaster wall paneling with thistle decorations that Tiffany designed for the saloon, while the unexpected combination of gold metallic thread and gray-blue silk points to Wheeler’s interest in color blending and effects of light in textile design.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Thistle textile
  • Designer: Designed by Tiffany & Wheeler (1879–1881)
  • Manufacturer: Probably manufactured by Cheney Brothers (American, 1838–1955)
  • Date: ca. 1881
  • Geography: Made in New York, New York, United States
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Silk and metal threads, damask, woven
  • Dimensions: 26 1/4 x 24 1/2 in. (66.7 x 62.2 cm)
  • Credit Line: Gift of Mrs. Boudinot Keith, 1928
  • Object Number: 28.70.3
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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