OMG, is that a Quilt?

In January, my family went on holidays to Mornington Peninsula and Melbourne….great time was had by all. We found Paella in the South Melbourne Markets…

Loads of Cockatoos feeding on the deck of the house we rented….

My 13 year old daughter announcing she is officially taller than me, and I am 5' 7" (172cm)…

We also went swimming with seals at Sorrento, but sorry you can't see a picture of me in a full body wet suit!

I did some hand piecing on my Mrs Billings….yes still plugging away…

But what I know you will be really interested in, is this quilt I found on the floor of a "Antique" shop in Dromana…I was wandering around the store, touching things, as you do in these places…first, a grey bundle of cloth on the floor caught my eye, moving closer it was easy to see the bundle was quilted, once unfolded this wonderful design and colour emerged.

But gosh the quilt is in bad shape, it has a burn mark, the dye has run, it was faded unevenly in parts, the fabric has started to deteriorate, but all I could think about was the lady that sat night after night quilting this quilt.

So for a grand sum of $10 I got to provide this poor old thing with a home, with some muttering from my husband….something about "it was like going to the RSPCA and coming home with the oldest dog" :)

More Details:  Of course there is no label….80" x 75", the back is a grey blue chambray…the outside border is a cotton sateen, and the rest of the fabrics are regular cotton, with the exception of the black squares which are a drill, and the wadding appears to be wool.

I have so many questions about the quilt. How old is it? Where did it come from? Is it made in Australia? If not how did it get here? What is the name of the pattern? On the last question, I found a photo of another antique quilt made from the very same pattern at littlewelshquilts , and it is identified as Amish, so is this an Amish pattern?

I guess it is unlikely answers will be found for these questions….but for $10 I have an antique quilt that will inspire me for ages!