Native Fauna Quilts

Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery
Rug made from skins of black quolls. The skins are dark grey-brown with black areas and each skin has cream spots. The skins are mainly machine stitched together with a few roughly hand sewn. The backing is maroon felt and this extends beyond the top with a scalloped edging. There is yellow ric-rac braid hand sewn on the back seam. 1300 x 885mm
National Museum of Australia
Platypus skin rug. Skins are joined in 7 rows with the larger skins on the outside and the smaller ones in the centre. Skins are rich dark brown with yellow/cream sides (the belly fur). The backing is dark brown felt extending beyond the fur and with a stamped scalloped edge. 1720 x 1490mm
Deb Nichol
Rug made from 40 brown fur skins (8 rows by 5), possibly possum. Skins are sewn by machine, with seams covered with white tape. Rug is backed with cream wool felt, and bordered with beige scalloped felt. There is a braid binding along the outer edge of the skins. No padding. 1640 x 1480mm
Bud and Patricia Ford
Round rug of whip tail wallaby skins pieced into centre circle. Skins have been joined and then stitched on to maroon baize backing which has traditional punched scalloped edge. The skins are wattle bark tanned. Diameter 1449mm
Marlene Toomey
Kangaroo skin rug featuring skins cut in diamond shapes. It is stitched with heavy cotton and the seams are oversewn. It is not backed. 1825 x 1290mm
Jan Gaudron
Possum skin rug with 6 rows of 7 skins. The backing is red felt with a border showing and peaked edge. 1680 x 1460mm
The Pioneer Women's Hut
Possum skin rug. Skins are recantular centre back pieces, approximately 230mm x 140mm. They are hand stitched together in 11 rows running the length of the rug. At one end, the last row of skins goes across the rug. The backing is stitched to the skins and is mainly grey woollen material with a green piece added at one end. There is a scalloped edge and dark blue rat tail braid on the back 60mm from the edge. 2025 x 1400mm
John Coman
Dingo skin rug. 3 skins long x 5 skins wide with only the backs of the skins used. The backing is blue felt. The skins were tanned with wattle bark. 2100 x 1800mm
Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery
Platypus skin rug, 63 pelts in 7 rows by 9. Skins are small, rectangular and worn down. The colour is greyish brown with a darker centre. The skins are machine stitched then the rug is hand sewn to dark brown felt which extends to form a wide border and this has 3 rows of machine stitching. 1780 x 1425mm
Bud and Patricia Ford
Kangaroo skin rug backed on to a brown checked fringed rug. 1931 x 1525mm
N.S.W. Parks and Wildlife Service
Kangaroo skin rug made from 450 x 270mm pieces overstitched together. The backing is a wholecloth plaid in red brought to the front and machine stitched to form a 60mm binding. 1660 x 1400mm
Julie Treacy
Animal skin rug made from rough rectangles of kangaroo skins, hand sewn together with leather thonging. Backing is woollen blankets. 2135 x 2057mm
Name withheld
Wallaby skin rug backed with checked cotton material. 1220 x 610mm
Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
Small possum skin rug with the centre area greyish skins and 2 narrow borders of reddish brown and dark brown pelts. The skins are hand sewn with white thread. The backing is woollen material, light brown with dark brown woven stripe. 1380 x 1040mm
Patricia Roche
Opossum pelts cut into rectangles and joined. The top is piped in red felt and the backing is red felt with a double scalloped edge. 1640 x 1210mm
Miles Pioneer Village
3 fragments of koala bear skin joined with very fine stitching. Uneven edges. Thought to have been part of an aboriginal cloak or rug.
Valda Mentjox
Rug made from 12 large kangaroo skins. There are 4 'reds' ,one in each corner and the rest are 'greys'. The backing is green felt with the traditional scalloped edge extending beyond the fur. There is also black rat tail braid outlining the actual rug on the backing. 1850 x 1520mm
Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
Rug made from 40 quoll skins, 8 skins set in 5 rows. Skins are trimmed to rectangles and machine stitched together. Colours range from light cream to grey-brown with creamy yellow spots. The backing is dark green woven wool which extends beyond the top and is finished with a scalloped, punched edge. It is hand sewn to the top. 1575 x 1255mm
Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
Rug made from 54 Platypus skins; 6 rows of 9 rectangular pelts, brown with creamy yellow edges, machined together. The backing is red felt or baize and extends beyond the top with a punched scalloped border. The backing is hand stitched to the top and has a centre motif of a flower outlined in black braid within a large black rectangle. 1890 x 1635mm
Western Australian Museum
Possum skin rug made from rows of possum pelts sewn to a woollen blue checked blanket. 1720 x 1370mm

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