Posted: Thursday, April 16, 2020

The University of Evansville Libraries silk tapestry has won Arch Madness 2020, an artifact competition hosted by the David L. Rice Library at the University of Southern Indiana.

The silk tapestry, a part of the University’s archival collection, defeated USI’s University Archives and Special Collections "Marijuana and the Bible" booklet by a vote of 231 to 156, in the championship round. The silk tapestry automatically receives a bid to defend our title during next year’s Arch Madness competition.

Other participants in the competition included:

• USI’s University Archives and Special Collections
• Evansville Museum of Arts, History and Science
• John James Audubon Museum
• John M. Lawrence ’73 Library
• Newburgh Museum
• USI’s Archaeology Lab
• New Harmony’s Working Men’s Institute

About the silk tapestry:
The origins of this tapestry trace back to the missionary trips of the City United Methodist Church in Gary, Indiana. The image on the tapestry is known as Azure Dragon, which is one of the mythical creatures in Asian cultures. This item is believed to be a flag from the Chinese Qing dynasty, 1890-1912.

More information about the competition can be found at amusingartifacts.org.

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