A horse «England» in a patchwork style

The horse is decorated with drawings in the genre of patchwork technique (in English patchwork means «an item made of rags»). In patchwork pieces of different fabrics are connected together and form a seamless canvas. The patchwork technique has existed among many peoples of the world from time immemorial.

The ancestor of patchwork in Europe is England. In the 16th century cotton fabrics with exotic patterns began to come here from India. The colony captivated the monopoly with its cheap fabrics and virtually destroyed local manufactories in the British Isles. In 1712, a decree was issued banning the sale of Indian fabrics in Britain. There appeared deficit of bright thin cotton fabrics, because the British mainly produced wool and silk. Women carefully collected parts of the fabrics and later turned them into new products, connecting the pieces in a specific order.