I used the pen tool to draw a complex shape (tracing part of a map on the underlying layer). Having completed the shape, I was able to adjust it with the Node tool and then fill it with a pattern. After some further drawing activities, I returned to this shape, to discover that Inkscape now thought it was a rectangle. I cannot select the path (still correctly displayed within the rectangle though). Any attempt to change fill and stroke settings now affects the enclosing rectangle!

Have I hit a bug? Did I do something stupid?? I am a newbie with Inkscape and would be very grateful for any ideas on this.

Hi.

Are you sure it's not just an intetnional rendering of the fill rule you set?

Hi.

Check the statusfield at the bottom of the main Inkscape window to be sure that you are indeed working on the correct object.
(Had a similar situation where a rectangle with no fill or stroke was on top of what I tried to select.)
To select one object under another hold the alt button down while selecting with mouse.

Good Luck
RGDS
Ragnar

I would want to see the SVG file, to be able to figure out what happened, or how to fix it. The way you describe it leaves me with some questions, and it's often easier to just look into the SVG file, than go the Q and A route. And especially as a newbie, what you call a pattern and what I call a pattern, might be very different things (for example).

Agree with Brynn, without the svg file to examine, we're blindly speculating.