100% Silk Scarf — Filling the Powder Horn — Original Multicolored on Red

The Filling Powder Horn Collection

Satchel — Filling the Powder Horn — Original Multicolored on Red

The designs in this collection are inspired by American artist Oliver Ingraham Lay’s 1869 painting Filling the Powder Horn, specifically one of the shawls depicted on the floor of the painting. The painting is held in the collection of the Mayflower Descendants Museum, founded by American Tapestry’s creative director and founder, Cherie Behrens. Behrens personally selects the historic works and objects that inspire American Tapestry and develops each design from details found within them. Swipe to see the painting and close-up images of the shawl that inspired this design.

Meet the New American Art Museum Bringing History into Public View Through Art and Artifacts

Meet the New American Art Museum Bringing History into Public View Through Art and Artifacts

The Mayflower Descendants Museum is an American art museum whose holdings bring together a wide range of artists and stories—from talented and emerging artists, some of whom may not yet have been represented in museum collections, to artists whose work was overlooked or little known during their lifetimes, to artists represented in some of the world’s most significant institutional and royal collections.

In the latter category, works by artists represented in the Museum’s collection can also be found at historic European estates, in public spaces, and in major institutions, including the Louvre in Paris; the British Royal Collection; the Victoria and Albert Museum; the Royal Shakespeare Theatre Picture Gallery in Stratford-upon-Avon; The Metropolitan Museum of Art; the Smithsonian; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among others.

The Museum’s holdings also include works that have never before been on public view, created by both American and international artists whose art, objects, and stories intersect with the broader American story connected to Mayflower descendants—a diverse global population estimated to number more than 35 million.

About the Artist: Oliver Ingraham Lay (1845–1890)

Although Oliver Ingraham Lay’s life was cut short at the age of 45, he was a prolific American artist who earned recognition from the National Academy of Design, where he was elected an Associate. His paintings are held in museum and institutional collections across the United States, including the Smithsonian, and abroad at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre Picture Gallery in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. Lay is also cataloged in the Musée d’Orsay’s artist records in Paris.

Filling the Powder Horn

Created just four years after the Civil War, Filling the Powder Horn represents a notable departure from the portraiture and domestic interiors more commonly associated with Lay’s work. Its early-nineteenth-century atmosphere—expressed through clothing, furnishings, objects, and the quiet presence of the young girl—offers a more narrative glimpse into an earlier American moment.

The shawl at her feet is only a small detail within the larger composition, yet it becomes the point of departure for this collection: a historic textile motif carried forward from the painted interior into contemporary design.

Filling the Powder Horn a Recognized Leading Work by Oliver Ingraham Lay

In a January 31, 2026 social-media tribute marking Lay’s birthday, European art-law firm AMG Attorneys, which specializes in cultural heritage and provenance, ranked Filling the Powder Horn among what it identified as Lay’s three leading works. The other two works in that ranking are held by the Smithsonian.

About American Tapestry

American Tapestry, founded by Cherie Behrens, is a heritage-driven lifestyle house inspired by historic art and artifacts connected to the American story—often more than a century old—translated into handbags, travel accessories, home décor, jewelry, glassware, games, furniture, textiles, and more. Every design is created by Cherie Behrens and draws inspiration exclusively from works and objects held by the Mayflower Descendants Museum, which she also founded. 

American Tapestry follows the unexpected threads that connect the Museum’s holdings to American art, artifacts, literature, and cultural history. Not every work that inspires a collection was created by an American artist; some enter the American story through research that reveals their ties to American people, objects, and narratives.

Through these holdings, we trace the stitches of America’s past—uncovering connections among people, places, objects, art, literature, and history that together reveal an interwoven American tapestry.

Our mission is simple: to bring historic art, design, artifacts, and the stories that intersect with them forward into the present and into everyday life—bringing often‑invisible history into view.

Connect with American Tapestry

Website: www.thehouseofamericantapestry.com
Instagram: @americantapestryofficial
Facebook: American Tapestry
YouTube: @thehouseofamericantapestry
TikTok: @americantapestry
X: @americantapestr

Connect with the Mayflower Descendants Museum

Website: www.mayflowerdescendantsmuseum.org
Instagram: @mayflowerdescendantsmuseum
Facebook: Mayflower Descendants Museum
YouTube: @mayflowerdescendantsmuseum
TikTok: @mayflowermuseum
X: @MayflowerMuseum

Product Information

Crafted from luxurious 12-momme silk charmeuse, the scarf has a beautifully fluid drape and a smooth, luminous finish, with a lustrous face and soft matte reverse. The silk is breathable and exceptionally soft against the skin. Each scarf is digitally printed using permanent reactive inks for rich, lasting color and finished with a delicate machine-rolled baby hem.

• 100% 12-momme silk charmeuse
• Printed, cut, and sewn in Montreal, Canada
• Digitally printed with permanent reactive inks for rich, vivid color
• Lustrous face with a soft matte reverse
• Fluid, elegant drape
• Delicate machine-rolled baby hem

Care: Machine wash in cold water with ¼ cup vinegar and 2 teaspoons salt. Use a full-water cycle; do not use an eco cycle. Machine dry on delicate or hang to dry. Iron on the silk setting. Do not bleach. Can be dry cleaned.