circa 1930, Canton, Mississippi, cotton quilt top with red letter applique yellow stitching, "XXIII Psalms" stitched in gray, yellow rules, featuring scripture from Psalm 23: 1-6, 66 x 76-1/4 in.

Note: Exhibited at American Folk Art Museum, New York, Feb. 25 - Aug.1, 2004

Featured cover of Folk Art Magazine, Spring/Summer 2004 and article "Talking Quilts", by Stacy C. Hollander, p. 32-41.

"The entire text of Psalm 23 thunders edge to edge across the Psalm 23 Quilt, the densely packed words creating staccato rhythms as they compress and expand. An occasional letter turns backward; here and there a word features an original spelling: The impact is timeless, like an ancient tablet. Treating the quilt like a large sheet of paper, Lena Moore has lined the top with yellow rules that separate the rows of text and render the words more legible. This concrete treatment --the words of the psalm are contained within the lines--sparks a process of association with traditions as diverse as handwritten Southern folk signboards and the centuries old practice of "lining a hymn," wherein a leader calls out a line of text that is then sung back by the congregation. Just as the spirit of the congregation dictates the length of the notes that are sung, the words in this quilt flow with the spirit of its maker."

The New York Times, "Art Guide", 20 February 2004

The New York Times, "Design Review; Patchwork Portraits of American Life That Tell as Much as They Show", Ken Johnson, 13 February 2004

Provenance: Purchased from Shelly Zegart Quilts, etc., Louisville, Kentucky, 2 February 1999 for $13,500 (accompanied by receipt); the receipt indicates that "This quilt was brought to a show by the maker's daughter and granddaughter. It was bought by a picker and sold to a person who for 20 years has been a great resource and friend and she sold it to me"; The Collection of Janet Green

some toning and foxing, surface accretion along edges, attached sleeve on back top and bottom for hanging rods, smudging along bottom edge, separation at yellow above "head with", some some loose threads, scattered, slight stains on back, hole near "H" on side