A standard set of bedding in the late eighteenth century included a pair of blankets, sheets, and a coverlet. Rose blankets derived their name from the colorful, abstract designs, often called roses or rosings, embroidered at their corners. Produced in a variety of widths and qualities, they were acquired by a broad range of consumers, from Native Americans to the Anglo-American elite. Only tattered yarns survive to give a sense of the original decoration on this blanket, which family tradition maintains came from Mount Vernon. George Washington's accounts specify purchases of rose blankets in the 1790s, although this and other examples at Mount Vernon possibly date earlier.