Event handkerchief 1800 - 1815

This commemorative handkerchief, likely made in the 1800s, reproduces Asher Brown Durand's engraving of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. What's fascinating here is the way a momentous historical event is translated into a humble, everyday material: cloth. The image is printed onto the fabric’s surface, which would have been a relatively novel technology at the time. The textile support lends the image a softness and intimacy, far removed from the grandeur normally associated with depictions of nation-building. It collapses the boundary between high-minded ideals and domestic life. We can also consider the labor involved in producing such an object, and the lives of those who would have used it. This handkerchief probably wasn't meant for the elite, but rather for a broader public, keen to literally hold a piece of history in their hands. By embracing the accessibility of cloth, the artwork democratizes the very idea of national identity.