Gee's Bend quilts

The Montgomery Advertiser of Montgomery, Alabama quotes Derry Noyes, one of the Postal Service's six art directors, as saying, "The minute I saw the Gee's Bend quilts, I thought they were fantastic. If these aren't American treasures, I don't know what is."

Noyes said the difficult part was choosing just 10 from so many wonderful quilts.

According to the paper, the tradition of quilting in Gee's Bend (a rural community southwest of Selma,Alabama) was passed down from generation to generation by African Americans who were descended from slaves.

"The fact that they made them with the materials they had available to them and came up with patterns that were lively, fresh and innovative just bowled me over," said Noyes.

Part of the American Treasures series, commemorative stamps depicting 10 Gee's Bend quilts will be issued Aug. 24 and will be available nationwide the next day.

To read the entire article,New stamps Cut From Old Cloth,
click here.

For more on the quilts of Gee's Bend, click here.