Sampler
Unknown Artist
1808
Medium
Silk, metal thread, paper, hair and mica on wool canvas
Dimensions
H. 14 1/4 x W. 17 1/4 inches (36.2 x 43.8 cm)
Classification
Textiles-Embroidered
Culture
British
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
From the Collection of Mrs. Lathrop Colgate Harper, Bequest of Mabel Herbert Harper, 1957
Accession Number
57.122.306
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite Sampler from 1808, created by an unknown British artist, exemplifies the educational needlework practiced by young girls in early 19th-century Britain. Measuring 14¼ × 17¼ inches, it was likely stitched by a child as a display of domestic skills, featuring embroidered motifs of birds, peacocks, men, women and children against a wool canvas. Suchplers served as personal records of accomplishment, often incorporating alphabets, verses, or family symbols to prepare girls for homemaking and marriage. The artwork's medium is particularly striking: silk and shimmering metal threads p...