This message was sent to us from Robin Campbell, the curator at Peebles Island where the towels are stored. "Mystery solved - Mary and I both feel pretty sure they are towels. They are quite lovely. They run selvage to selvage 22" wide and at each end of the 50" length is a 2" wide hemstitched edge. Most of the field is plain with a very large calla lily pattern - looks almost art nouveau to me - that meanders. If you fold the fabric in thirds so that it measures about 7" wide by 50" long the monogram (for William & Lucy?) is clearly in the center of the panel. (Which is how it would be seen if it hung on a towel rack). They really are a very fine linen - certainly nice enough quality to be dinner napkins. I can see why Brielle thought they were napkins. There is another set with them that clearly are napkins - also with the WLJ monogram. They have the monogram in one corner and the pattern is clearly designed to fit a sq piece of cloth." The tri-fold nature of the cloth along with the fact that they are only hemstitched at the top and bottom, as opposed to all the way around like a napkin, indicate that they are, more likely than not, towels. A huge thanks for the sleuthing and for the chuckles. FYI - William II and Lucy Jay, the great-grandson and wife of John Jay were married in the 1860s so the supposition was that they were from their bridal trousseau. However, the calla lily pattern would indicate that they were a bit later, perhaps the 1890s, which would be appropriate for William and Lucy's dates. ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).