Cray

William Morris

1884 · Block-printed cotton · Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Size2:3 ratio

Frame

$59Unframed print · made to order

📦 Free shipping on every order, arriving in 4–9 business days with production included. Express ($14.90) at checkout arrives in 4–6 business days.

Complete the setHangs well with these two

3 × $59 at 16 × 24 in, unframed = $177 → $159.30 as a set · 10% included · free shipping

Giclée-printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper

Free shipping worldwide · arrives in 4–9 business days

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free

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About this work

Artist: William Morris (1834–1896)
Year: 1884
Medium: Block-printed cotton
Original size: 95 × 37 cm (piece a)
Collection: Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
Movement: Arts and Crafts

Big pink, crimson and yellow flowers suggesting tree peonies and lotus hang from curving pale stems with green and cream leaves, over a dark blue-green ground filled with a fine pattern of scrolling stems and tiny flowers. Cray was designed by William Morris in 1884 and named after the River Cray, one of a series of patterns from these years named after tributaries of the Thames and other rivers. Its large, complex repeat needed 34 printing blocks, more than any other Morris design, making it his most expensive block-printed fabric. It was printed at Merton Abbey. The Cooper Hewitt catalogues this tall, narrow piece simply as a textile; it carries the firm's registration mark.

This exhibition-poster edition shows the whole sample beneath original typography set in-house. The design is in the public domain.

Where it works

Pink and crimson blooms on dark blue-green make a bold, colourful focal piece for a living room, dining room or hallway. Pair it with Compton, another large-flowered dark-ground cotton, at 16×24 in black.

Style, size & framing detail

Style: Exhibition poster of an Arts and Crafts pattern
Era: 19th century (1884)
Orientation: Portrait
Palette: cream & beige
Mood: decorative, classic
Rooms: living room, dining room, hallway or entryway, dorm room

Size. We'd hang this one at 16×24. Prints at 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in — 12×18 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 16×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×36 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed.

Framing. Exhibition posters sit best in a slim black frame with no mat — the typeset margin is the mat.

Pairing. Hangs alone or as a matched pair; three or more prints are 10% off.

Details & materials

• Exhibition poster — original, drawn in-house • Heavyweight matte fine-art paper, giclée printed at 300 DPI • Sizes: 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in; every size also available framed • Framed option: wood frame in black or natural wood, 12 mm wide and 22 mm deep, with a plexiglass front and no mat; the print is mounted inside and the frame's outside measures the listed size • Made to order; colours may vary slightly from screen

Shipping & returns

Printed after you order at the facility nearest you, then shipped. Standard delivery is free and takes 4–9 business days from order to door in the US, UK and EU (up to 10 elsewhere); Express takes 4–6 business days. Because each print is made to order we don't take change-of-mind returns, but if it arrives damaged or flawed we'll reprint or refund it — no return needed. Full policy →

Is this the whole design, or a crop?

The whole sample, uncropped, set above exhibition typography designed in-house. For the pattern edge to edge, choose the full-bleed print.

Is Cray in the public domain?

Yes. William Morris (1834–1896) died more than 70 years ago and the design dates from before 1931, so it is public domain. This print is a reproduction made from a high-resolution scan of an original held by Cooper Hewitt.

What is it printed on?

Heavyweight matte fine-art paper with pigment inks, made to order in 12×18, 16×24 and 24×36 inches; every size is also offered framed in black or natural wood, with plexiglass and no mat. Colours are matched to the scan, not brightened.

When was Cray designed?

William Morris designed Cray in 1884; this sample is block-printed cotton.

What size should I choose?

For Cray we'd choose 16×24. Patterns also hang well as a pair or a row of three colourways at the same size.

About this design

An exhibition poster of William Morris's Cray — the whole printed textile sample shown uncropped beneath gallery typography, styled as an Arts and Crafts exhibition print. A gallery-style exhibition poster: a celebrated public-domain artwork shown whole and uncropped beneath original exhibition typography set in-house — printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper. Every size is offered unframed or framed in black or natural wood. Part of the Madten Exhibition Posters Collection. — — — Printed to order and shipped by our production partner, Gelato.

Buy with confidence

The Madten promise

Gallery-grade archival giclée. Rich pigment inks on heavyweight fine-art paper (or gallery-wrapped canvas) — built to last, not a poster-shop print.

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free. Every piece is made to order; if it shows up damaged or flawed we remake it, no return needed.

Free worldwide shipping. Made & shipped from the facility nearest you — most orders arrive in 4–9 business days.

Secure checkout. Payments handled by Stripe; we never see or store your card.

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