Object Name: Sampler
Object ID: 1966.075.02
Creator: Damon, Mary L. (1811-1856)
Place of Origin: Wayland, MA
Date: 1825
Description: Sampler. Made by Mary L. Damon (1811-1856), 1825, Wayland, Massachusetts. Embroidered with silk twist threads on loosely woven linen, with three alphabets, all in cross stitch: first, large script letters, with colors cream, green, black, and blue shifting every two to four letters; second, smaller block capitals as above; and third, lower-case letters, also worked in shifting colors. Numbers one through eleven are cross-stitched in black following the alphabets. The lower half of the sampler bears the verse worked in dark brown, "When we offend against our God / We'll ask his Pard'ning love / 'Twas for our sins the Saviour died / And Pleads for us above." The last section of the sampler features the inscription worked in blue, "Mary L Damon's work wrought / in the year 1825 Aged 13 year's [sic]," above a section of decorative motifs of flower baskets flanking a tuft of flowers in a grassy ground, in green, blue, and tan (originally pink). An undulating strawberry vine border surrounds all four sides. In addition to cross stitch, embroidery stitches used in the decorative elements include surface satin and straight. All four edges are hemstitched. Verse copied from "Sermons to Children, No. 35," The Publications of the New England Tract Society. Volume II. Andover, Massachusetts: Flagg and Gould, 1820), p. 131.
Material: Textile
Linen
Silk
Dimensions: H-15.8 W-12.25 inches
Provenance: Bought by the donor at Ed Stearns' Auction Barn, Rindge, NH.
Credit Line: Gift of Louise H. Taylor
People:
Damon, Mary L. (1811-1856)
Subjects:
Embroidery