#5924 - "To Do Unto Others" Sampler

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17" x 16 1/2".   21 1/2" x 21" including beautiful period bird's eye maple frame.   This charming smpler, although unfinished, is still quite lovely.   There is a very ambitious border of large leaves which surrounds

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the body of the sampler.   At the top we find a depiction of the stitcher's home, her church, and possibly her school.   The church is particularly realistic and well done.   These buildings are surrounded by florals and trees and there is also a very nice stag reclining under a tree.

The wonderfully moralistic verse reads " To do unto others as I would  That they should do unto me  Would make me honest kind and good   As children ought to be 

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Whether I am at home or school   Or walking out abroad   I never should forget this rule   Of Jesus Christ our Lord".   The sampler is not signed or dated, but it is circa 1850.  

I find it quite charming that she mentions both her home and school in the verse and also stitches them into the top of the sampler.  

The condition is quite good.   There are no holes or thread loss, although there is a slight darkening around the edges of the sampler in the border area.                                                        $875.00       

 #5825 - Martha Fryer Sampler

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16" x 16 1/2".   20" x 21" including period frame.  Martha's sampler features alphabets, numbers, and lots of charming motifs.  Unfortunately, the photos show a bit of camera glare so the sampler

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shows much better in person than in these photos.  The colors are quite pretty.  It is worked in nice shades of pastel blue, brown, cream and pink.  The motifs include birds, dogs, flowers and trees. 

The sampler is in good condition with no holes and no thread losses.   There is some staining but it does not detract very much from the overall look of the sampler.  

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  The sampler is signed " Martha Fryer May 1st  1871  Aged 12 years".                                                                               $1245.00      

 #5832 - Esther Pittam Sampler

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12 1/2" x 12 1/2".   17" x 17" including amazing original   frame.   The frame is like a mozaic of pieces of wood veneer.  It is really quite beautiful! 

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Esther's lovely sampler features a sawtooth satin stitch border surrounding an alphabet, lots of motifs, a verse and a lovely strawberry dividing band.  In other words, she has included all of the most common elements of an antique sampler.   She stitched trees, flowers birds and dogs, all in a very pleasing and balanced manner.  .    

The verse reads  " wide as the world is thy command  vast as eternity thy love   firm as a rock thy truth shall stand  when rolling years shall cease to move".  

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She signs her sampler  " Esther Pittam   Litchborough (in England)  August 28  1839  in the 15 year of her age".      

The sampler is in fairly good condition although there are some problems.   There is a good sized hole near the star in the upper left corner, and a small one near the base of the tree below that.   Neither hole seems to affect the actual stitching very much.  There is also some overall darkening to the sampler, but there is no thread loss and the colors are still strong.                                                                       $1675.00      

 #5848 - Elizabeth Marshall Sampler

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16 1/4" x 9 1/2".    19 1/2" x 13" including frame.  Elizabeth labelled her sampler at the top  " Solomon's Tempel".  This is a particularly lovely representation of the famed temple.  In addition to the temple itself, Elizabeth

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shows a charming garden surrounding it, as well as a elegant little fence across the front of it.   And on one side of the temple, she stitched a lovely house or perhaps her school.   The garden contains lots of flowers, trees and birds. 

In the upper left corner Elizabeth stitched, " Elizabeth Marshall her Work Wrought at Blyton School in the 10 year of her Age in the year of Our Lord 1818 April the 20".        

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This unusual sampler does have some condition problems.  There has been a repair between the top border and the main body of the sampler that covers about 2/3 of the width of the piece.   This is fairly visable in the pictures.   And there are 3 - 4 small holes to the left of the temple between the building and the fence.   There is also a bit of color-bleed in the signature area.  The rest of the sampler is in very good condition.  Actually, I think that some of the right border is covered by the frame, so the sampler is probably a little bigger than the dimensions mentioned above.   In spite of the repair, I still think that this is a very nice piece of needle art.                                                                          $2250.00      

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#5474

Elizabeth Mansergh Sampler - 17 1/2" X 17 1/2".  19" X 19" including vintage frame. Stitched in silk threads, this sampler features a lovely stately house, a large praying lady kneeling on a cushion, cherubs, a realistic rose and lovely trees (perhaps willow

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trees). The verse reads "Jesus permit thy gracious name to stand,  As the first effort of an infants hand. And while her fingers oer the canvass move Engage her tender heart to seek thy love. With thy dear children may she have a part,  And write thy Name thy self

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upon her heart."   It is signed  " Elizabeth Mansergh Her Work aged 9 Years  1829." There is significant staining in the area of the house and signature, but otherwise it is in excellent condition. There are two very small holes under the house which are barely noticeable. The colors of the silk are still vibrant.   $1,250.00

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#5470

Pheby Searson Sampler - 12" X 17". 17 1/2" X 22" including new frame. This sweet verse and motif sampler is dated 1805. While there is some thread loss in the verse area, it is still mostly legible. It reads "Hard lot of mine my

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days are cast among the sons of strife whose never ceasing sprawling waste my golden words of life. Peace is the blessing that I seek. How lovely are its charms. I am for peace but when I speak they all declare for arms."  This verse probably refers

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to the battle of Trafalgar which occured Oct. 21, 1805.  The verse is surrounded by a lovely series of motifs and a strawberry border.  In addition to the thread loss, there are three holes located in the left border near the top, under the first word of the verse and the bottom left near the fruit basket. It has been conservation mounted and framed. $985.00

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#5591
Mary Ann Chaille Sampler

12 1/2" x 13". 15" x 15 1/2" including a black frame. It is dated January 25, 1820. This is a lovely piece in excellent condition. There is no thread loss, and no holes , and only a small stain in each

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of the two left corners. Some of the stitches are positively tiny. The last alphabet and the verse are stitched over one thread instead of the more usual two threads. The colors are a rich honey gold, two different shades of green, cream, black and a touch of pink. The verse reads: "Hymn Since Jesus loves to hear

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his praise Arise from infant tongues Let us not waste our youthful days In vain and idle songs. We can't too early serve the Lord Nor love his name too dear Nor price too much his precious word Nor learn too soon his fear. The pleasures that his children find Exceed the sinner's mirth Are food for the immortal mind And suit our humble birth." $1285.00

     #5555 - Rebekah Fishenden Sampler

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12 1/2"  x 13 1/2".    15" x 16 1/2 " including vintage frame    Rebekah's lovely silkwork sampler features a very popular verse for antique samplers.  It reads " Jesus permit thy

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gracious Name to stand  As the first efforsts of an infant hand   And while my fingers on the canvas move   Engage my sinful heart to seek thy love    With thy dear children Lord give me a part  And write thy Name dear Jesus on my heart".                                                                                                                                                  Motifs used include a church, a gazebo, flowers, birds, trees and two wonderful stags, all surrounded by a delicate floral border.  It is signed " Rebekan Fishenden  Mrch 6, 1846".   The large floral in the bottom center is primarily worked in beautifully executed satin stitch.                                                                                

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                                                                                                                    The condition is still quite good.   There is a very slight stain in the bottom left corner and a bit of thread loss to the name Rebekah.  There is some darkening around the verse area.  But the fabric is showing no holes, the colors are strong and the silk still retains quite a bit of its shine.   The sampler has been mounted on acid-free mat board.                                               $1850.00