#8128                                                                                                      Elizabeth Sheppard Sampler               

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11 3/4" x 15" or 15 1/2" x 19 including a modern wood frame with a gilt liner. Elizabeth stitched a gorgeous sampler with quite a bit of visual interest.  The stately brick house in the bottom center is both impressive and beautiful  There are three chim- neys, eight windows and a lovely double door.  There is also a charming checkerboard path leading up to the door. And the animals in the perfect garden are really lovely. There are sheep both sitting and standing, dogs, and four wonderful swans.

She also included baskets of fruit, trees, florals, butterflies and a verse and she surrounded her lovely sampler with an undulating strawberry border.  

 

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                                                                                                Her verse reads:

Oh think not my child as you grow up in life
That pleasures unceasing will flow
Disappointment and trouble and sorrow and strife
Will follow wherever you go".

She signed her sampler,  " Elizabeth Sheppard's Work aged 9 years 1827 ". 
 

                                                                                    

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The condition of Elizabeth's elegant sampler is very good. I didn't find any holes in the fabric and there are absolutely no losses to the silks. As the pictures show, the colors are still strong.  There is a bit of overall darkening to the fabric but the only noticable spot of that is below the bottom border area.  The sampler is mounted on acid-free board.                                                                                                                                                                    $1650

                                                                             #8121                                                                                                                  "MD"
                                               17th Century Band Sampler              

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5 1/2" x 34" or 7" x 35 " including a modern frame.  I believe this second 17th century sampler is even older than the one above. This one is circa 1650. The first band of the sampler is reminiscent of the early 17th century spot motif samplers with its randomly placed decorative motifs.

 The second band includes two figures known as 'boxers' due to their stance with a raised arm as if they are taking guard. The figure of a boxer is also thought to be the motif of a lover offer- ing a flower to his lady.  Whichever sentiment the stitcher was thinking of when she stitched this piece, the boxers are simply charming.

 

 

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There is band after band filled with floral motifs of all kinds. One of the bands is worked in whitework. The stitcher used many different stitches including running stitch, double running stitch, algerian eyelet stitch, queen stitch, and detached buttonhole stitch.  The outer edges of the fabric are hemstitched. After the alphabet at the bottom of the sampler we see the initials "MD".

The top half of the sampler is worked in silk while the bottom half is worked in wool. Because of the natural beauty of the silk, the top half of the sampler appears to be much more delicate than the bottom half. It may be that the bottom half of the sampler was worked by a different stitch- er or the different look could be caused by the different types of fibers used. 

                                                                                    

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The condition of this beautiful piece of needlework is quite good considering its extreme age. There are no holes in the fabric and there are no stains. There is a fair amount of thread loss in in the more colorful areas.   The bottom of the sampler has approximately two inches of unstitched fabric. It is framed on acid-free board.                                                                                                                                                                                                               $1875

                                                                             #8116                                                                                                      Sidney Howard Sampler                                                                                            Waynesville School                                                                                              

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Wood County, Ohio
            
20 1/2" x 16 1/2" or 26" x 22 " including a beautiful period bird's eye maple frame. Sidney's wonderful Quaker sampler is actually quite rare. According to Sue Studebaker in her book , Ohio Is My Dwelling Place, "only eighteen samplers believed to have been stitched at the Waynesville School have been discovered." I believe this to be the nineteenth. Sidney was born in 1807 in Wood County, Ohio. Her parents were Willian Howard and Elizabeth Polly Patterson. Sidney married Willaim Pratt on June 12, 1824 in Wood County, Ohio. The "W" stitched into the basket of fruit is characteristic of only two places - Westtown School in Pennsylvania and Waynesville School in Waynesville, Ohio. 

Sidney's lovely sampler is filled with many of the motifs we typically find on Quaker samplers.  There are the two facing birds, the many Quaker florals, the eight corner stars and of course, the basket of fruit with the "W", as well as the verse written in the Quaker alphabet. This is truely a special piece of needlework history.                                     

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                                                                                                                                                                          Her verse reads:                                                        

"This work perhaps my friends may have
When I am in my silent grave
And which wheneer thy chance to see
May kind remembrance picture me
While on the glowing canvafs stands
The labor of my youthful hands"

She signed her sampler,  "Sidney Howard  1823 ".
 

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The condition of Sidney's rare needlework is quite good. The only issue to the condition that I can see is the darkening or stain in the verse area.  And even that is not particularly bothersome.  It is framed on acid-free board.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              SOLD

                                                                             #8098                                                                                                      Ann Williams Sampler              

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12" x 21" or 16 1/2" x 21 1/4 " including a gorgeous period bird's eye maple frame with a gilt liner.  Ann's fantastic sampler features a very realistic rendition of Adam and Eve in the Gar- den of Eden. The apple tree is very stylized and of course, the serpent is coiled around the trunk of the tree.  Under the tree there is an almost lacy looking carnation band.  It's actually quite lovely. 

She added the usual birds, baskets of fruit, trees, florals and a stag, but a really beautiful element of her sampler is the border. It's actually a triple border. The inner satin stitch border is made up of alternating square shapes.  Next she added an arcaded floral border followed by a sawtooth satin stich border on the outside edge. It really frames her sampler and gives it an elegant appearance.     

 

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Ann's verse reads:

"Why should I say tis yet too soon
To seek for heaven or think of death
A flower may fade before 'tis noon
And I this day may lose my breath"

She signed her sampler "Ann Williams work
in the 15th year of her age and the year of
our Lord   1837".

                                                                                  

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The condition of Ann's needlework is good with only a few small holes in the fabric. There are also two medium size holes, both in the bottom border area. There is also an overall darkening to the fabric, but there are no losses to the silks and the colors are still strong. The sampler has been mounted on acid-free board.                                                                                                                                                                                                              $1645

                                                                             #8082                                                                                                      Mary Masters Sampler              

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11" x 13 1/2" or 14 1/2" x 17 " including a period maple frame. Mary stitched her vibrant sampler at the very young age of eight years. She included two wonderful verses and loads of charm- ing motifs.  There are birds and stags and two funky swans.  There are trees and cherubs and florals as well as a gorgeous mansion with a front garden and a picket fence.  She stitched  "P R Wales" beneath a crown which undoubtedly refers to "Prince Regent - the Prince of Wales".   And she surrounded it all with a delicate strawberry border. All this at the tender age of eight years.  It's quite lovely.

 

 Her verses read:

"Friendship

 

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Teach me ye knowing and discerning Few
Where I may find a Friend both firm and true
Who dares stand by me when in deep Distress
And then his Love and Friendship most Espress"

"Virtue

Virtue's the chiefest beauty of the mind
The noblest ornament of human kind
Virtue's our safeguard and our guiding star
That stirs up reason when our senses far"

She signed her sampler,  " Mary Masters  Aged eight years. ".
 

                                                                                    

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The condition of Mary's needlework is good but it does have some issues.  There are a few very tiny holes and one medium sized hole between the right border and the right tree next to the bunny. There is also some overall darkening to the fabric.  The band of sawtooth satin stitch below the first verse has faded away, but the rest of the silks are still vibrant. It is framed on acid-free board and the one hole is really not noticible unless you are specifically looking for it..                                                                                                                                                                  $1265