Object Name: Sampler
Object ID: 1969.504.08
Creator: McColley, Mahala (1803-1846)
Place of Origin: Hillsborough, NH
Date: 1820 circa
Description: Sampler. Attributed to Mahala McColley (1803-1846), Hillsborough, NH; c. 1820. Silk embroidery on loosely-woven linen ground. Worked with two verses, headed by the title "Keep these laws." The first verse is the Ten Commandments within an octagonal checkerboard frame: "Have thou no God but me / Unto no idol bend thy knee / Take not the name of God in vain / Do not the sabbath day Profane / Honor thy Father and thy Mother too / And see that thou no murder do / Let chastity preserve thee clean / And steal not though thy case be mean / Bear no false witness shun that blot / What is thy neighbors covet not." Second verse: "In natures volume every line / Proclaims its author all divine / And every plant and every flower / Are trophies of his sovereign power / The sky above the earth we tread / Their Makers glory widely spread / But that by inspiration given / Directs our souls the way to Heaven." Inscribed below this is "Mahala McColley." All of the lettering is worked in black cross stitch. Below the name is stitched a double-handled basket of fruit. A border of realistic flowers, including roses, carnations, hearts-ease and strawberries, surrounds all four sides. Birds worked in shades of blue silk floss in closely worked outline stitches appear in the upper corners. The flowers are similarly worked in closely placed outline stitches. Other stitches include chain and satin. The cross stitches of the basket are pulled tight to create an open pattern in the weave structure of the linen ground. Blue and aqua shades have mostly retained their color, the cream and tan colors were originally shades of coral and pink, as can be seen on the sampler reverse. All four edges are hemstitched. The original drawing in red ink can be seen under the embroidery.
Material: Textile
Linen
Silk
Dimensions: H-25.25 W-17.5 inches
Provenance: Probably the gift of Elizabeth Gibson Ames (1844-1942), the daughter of Mahala (McColley) Gibson (1803-1846). Presented prior to 1924.
Credit Line: New Hampshire Historical Collection
People:
McColley, Mahala (1803-1846),
Ames, Elizabeth Gibson (1844-1942)
Subjects:
Bible,
Religious education,
Ten commandments