#6746                                                                                                      Mary Turnor Sampler               

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7 1/2 " x 21".   9 1/2 " x 23 " including a modern frame.   Mary's beautiful sampler is a very typical band sampler in that it starts with bands of alphabets and numbers, followed with pro- gressively more elaborate decorative bands.  But it is a very nice band sampler because some of those decorative bands are both very unusual and quite lovely.   The patterns and motifs used are reminiscent of the motifs used in earlier band samplers of the 17th century.  While Mary stitched the final band on the sampler in simple cross stitch, it has the look and feel of a band worked in flame stitch.        

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Mary signed her sampler  "Mary Turnor  1768"
so her needlework is actually quite early.   The back of the sampler has a printed label which reads, "Only conserva- tion framing techniques and archival quality acid-free mat- erials were used in the production of this piece."   I have not taken the sampler out of its frame, but I believe the label to be accurate.

                                                                                                  

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In spite of its age, the sampler appears to be in very good condition.   There is some overall darkening to the fabric, but I think that is partly due to the fabric being dark to start with. There are no holes although the linen is a bit thin in some areas. Because a white mat was used behind a dark fabric, the fabric looks a lot thinner than it is. The fabric is actually quite strong.  The thinning is a very small problem to the condition of the sampler.  The colors are still strong and there is only a very tiny amount of thread loss. This is a very early sampler in good condition with an affordable price.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            $1695.00

                                                                             #7004                                                                                                      Jane Moore Sampler              

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12 1/2 " x 17".    15 " x 19 1/2 " including a a lovely antique maple frame. Jane's gorgeous sampler has a great deal of visual impact.  Your eye is immediately drawn to the three wonderful animals that she depicted in the center of her sampler.  I simply cannot decide if the fabulous animal on the left is a cat or a tiger.  It could go either way, but whichever it is it is gorgeous, as are the stag on the right and the horse in the bottom center.  The brick house with four chimneys is equally beautiful and the sur- rounding trees are both creative and lovely. And that is just the beginning of the amazing and wonderful motifs that Jane worked into her sampler.  This lovely needlework has a great deal of visual appeal.
                                          

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Jane's verse reads:

Jesus permit thy gracious name to stand
As the first efforts of an infants hand
And while her fingers on the canvas move
Engage her tender heart to seek thy love"

She signed her sampler,  "Perform'd by Jane Moore in
the 12th Year of her age   182?".  The last two numbers are difficult to read.                                        

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Jane's sampler is showing a bit of wear but it is still in reasonably good condition. There are a few holes, the worst of which is in the bottom right corner of the fabric and just under the horse's head.  There is also a bit of faint bleeding just above and to the right of the verse.  But the colors are vivid and there is only a bit of thread loss to the verse and the date.  The sampler has been mounted on acid-free board.                                                                                                                                                                $2650.00

                                                                                               #6993                                                                                                      Quaker Medallion Sampler              

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19 1/2 " x 14 1/2".    22 1/2 " x 17 1/2 " including a 19th century maple frame. Because they are so desire- able, these wonderful quaker medallion pieces have become very, very rare.  I haven't had one available in quite a while. It features the characteristic half octagons around the outer edges of the sampler that are so recog- nizably quaker.  There is such charm in these motifs.  They have always reminded me of the designs seen on quilts or woven coverlets. I think of these wonderful medallion samplers as a sort of a cross between a quilt, a coverlet and a sampler.  This one is dated 1798.                                                

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Within the octagons we find many of the floral motifs also typically seen on quaker samplers. And there are many sets of initials. So many sets in fact that it is difficult to determine which initials belong to our sampler maker.  My guess is that the " MH" surrounding the floral in the center octagon were probably our needlewoman's.

                                                                                                  

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There is a fair amount of thread loss throughout the piece, but the sampler is otherwise in good condition.  There are no holes in the fabric, no bleeding and the colors are still vibrant. It has been mounted on acid-free board.                                                                                                $4850.00

                                                                             #6991                                                                                                      Hannah Dew Sampler              

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21 " x 16 1/2".    26 1/4 " x 21 1/2 " including a 19th century bird's eye maple frame.  There are so many wonderful things in Hannah's beautiful sampler that it's difficult to know where to begin. She stitched a lovely house with a family strolling in the garden with their dog and some deer. They are of course, in period costume.  It's a lovely garden with lots of trees and flowers surrounded by a pretty fence.  Interestingly, she also stitched her rendition of Adam & Eve and the Tree of Life standing inside the garden fence.  It is common to see Adam & Eve on samplers, but not standing in a garden with other people! Also of note is her beautiful border.  The top border is quite elaborate while the other three sides are fairly simple.    

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Hannah's verse reads:

" Since I'm a stranger here below
Let not thy path be hid
But mark the road my feet should go
And be my constant guide"

" Hannah Dew Finished this Work February the 19  1834  Aged 14 years". Hannah was christened on July 30, 1820 in Suffolk, England. 
      

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There is a noticable water stain and a bit of bleeding running down the right side of the sampler.  And though the colors are still vibrant, there are some thread losses. There are also three small holes and two larger holes in the fabric.  The biggest hole is just to the right of "Aged 14 years", and the second largest hole is between the first and second word of the last line of her verse.  In spite of its condition problems this sampler is quite impressive and very beautiful. It has been mounted on acid-free board.                                                                                                                                                                          $1950.00

     #7005 - Whitework Reticella Sampler

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 6 1/2"  x 35 ".   11 1/2" x 40" including  modern frame.   This stunning museum quality whitework sampler is circa 1620 - 1650.  And, of course, pictures cannot do it justice.   It is filled with amazing techniques including surface embroidery, pulled work, reticella, detached buttonhole stitch, double running stitch

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and lots of complex satin stitch.patterns.     This is truly a magnificent and extremely rare piece of needlework history.     

There is band after band of patterns and techniques that have been largely lost to today's needlewoman.   These are extremely advanced techniques that would have been performed by a older stitcher with much experience and knowledge of needlework.  An opportunity to own a sampler of this type and quality is quite rare.    

This is a superb example of techniques that were only done in the 17th century.  There are nine different bands of exquisite reticella lace.  Even on 17th century samplers reticella is fairly uncommon. Only the most advanced needlewomen were able to do these incredibly time consuming techniques.  To begin a band of reticella the stitcher starts by cutting and removing most of the threads of the linen, leaving only a few vertical and horizontal threads. Then she reinforces the stability of the fabric by weaving in diagonal, vertical and horizontal threads to create a grid of squares.  She then strengthens the grid by needleweaving those threads. From there she creates the stunning lacey patterns by adding threads onto the grid.  You can actually see examples of some of these grids on the right edge of some of the reticella bands. In addition, our needlewoman added a charming example of the detached buttonhole stitch near the top on the outer left edge of the fabric.  This sampler is a perfect tutorial on how to do these almost lost techniques. It is stunningly beautiful and very labor intensive, so it is not surprising that these are fairly rare techniques to find on a sampler.  The final four bands of the sampler are stitched using pulled work and whitework. The history and the beauty in this magnificent needlework are really quite difficult to describe.
    

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There is a darkening or stain at the top of the sampler and there is an overall darkening to the entire sam- pler.  But despite the number of threads removed to create the lace patterns, the fabric is still strong and stable.  There are a few other very small stains but I would have to say that this stunning piece of history is still in good condition.  It has been backed with acid-free board.                                                                                                       SOLD