Notes
This painted canvas floorcloth is a reproduction of an 18th-century floor covering. It is painted in a compass rose and diamonds pattern in green and beige. Floorcloths served several purposes: they protected floors, decorated a room, and also helped to insulate a space. Originally made of canvas, linseed oil, whiting, and pigments, a painted floorcloth was water- and insect-resistant and easier to clean than the more familiar rug or carpet.
In 2000, Margaret Henry Penick Nuttle (1913–2009) commissioned this floorcloth for the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation. Stuart Bailey, a specialist in gilding conservation and floorcloths, in Richmond, Virginia, made the floorcloth. It was donated to the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation on February 19, 2001.