This exquisite quilt was produced by around 20 women prisoners who travelled from England to Tasmania, aboard the HMS Rajah ship in 1841.
But the story behind this quilt begins in 1816, with a woman called Elizabeth Fry. Concerned with the rough conditions that female prisoners faced during their voyage, Fry formed the British Ladies Society for the Reformation of Female Prisoners. Their mission was to improve conditions for the prisoners in England (as well as those on board) and grant women skills in which they could monetise. Such as handing out bundles of sewing supplies so women could sell hand-made textiles at ports along the way. The hope was that this would allow the imprisoned women to build a new life on the ship’s various stops, which ended in Tasmania. It is this initiative that made way for this mesmerising textile.
Let take a closer look, like at the extraordinary array of fabrics used, from West African leopard print, and Batik patterns, to East Asian influenced designs. We can even see small pin-pricks of blood – which shows us the reality of the women’s skill, living conditions, and their great dedication.
Its magnitude and complexity could not have been achieved without the masterful direction undertaken by, we think, Miss Kezia Hayter, a free passenger who spent time aboard the Rajah ship on Fry’s recommendation.
Once complete, the quilt was presented to the Lieutenant of Van Diemen's Land’s wife, Lady Jane Franklin, in gratitude for the care she had shown to the women’s cause. The inscription on the lower border speaks to this so beautifully. Let’s read it together:
To the ladies of the convict ship committee, this quilt worked by the convicts of the ship Rajah during their voyage to van Dieman’s Land is presented as a testimony of the gratitude with which they remember their exertions for their welfare while in England and during their passage and also as a proof that they have not neglected the ladies’ kind admonitions of being industrious.
The Rajah quilt has endured centuries, and stands here today as a testament to the women who overcame their plights, to work together, and create something that glistens, out of the bleakest conditions.
