Diamonds, decoys and dreams of Baltimore.
On this day in 1905 in Pretoria, South Africa, a 3,106-carat diamond weighing 1.33 pounds was discovered. It was named the Cullinan diamond after the mine’s owner. It was presented to Britain’s King Edward VII as a gift, and to ensure it’s safe passage from Africa to London a decoy diamond was sent first with heavy security; meanwhile the real Cullinan traveled separately in a plain box.
Teresa Stoller of Flagler Beach, Florida made this small wall quilt titled “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” in 2011 for the Quilt Alliance’s annual quilt contest. Teresa wrote this about her quilt: “This quilt is my playful interpretation of the theme People, Pattern, Passions. I was inspired by wonderful memoires of attending Baltimore Orioles’ baseball games at Camden Yards with my husband and two children. As I looked around the stadium, I saw those 47,000 heads as a sea of colorful circular shapes ….. big, small, dark, light, rough, smooth ….. all different, yet the same: a repetition of happy circles! … I invite you to gaze into my quilt, hear the cheering fans, smell the popcorn and stadium hot dogs, enjoy the game and revel in the beauty of that perfectly cut field….”
View this quilt on The Quilt Index to read more about it’s history, design and construction. Be sure to use the zoom tool for a detailed view.
Sources:
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/worlds-largest-diamond-found
Posted by Amy E. Milne
Executive Director, Quilt Alliance
amy.milne@quiltalliance.org