Sampler
Polly Bedford
1791
- Medium
- Wool, plain weave; embroidered with silk floss and silk yarns in back, chain, Cretan, individual back, individual running, Roman, satin, stem, and surface satin stitches; laid work, couching, and Roumanian couching
- Dimensions
- 42.9 × 43.7 cm (16 7/8 × 17 1/4 in.)
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago
Styles
Tags
wool (textile)silk (fiber)sheepanimalssamplerpeoplebirdsembroideryneedlework (visual works)housestreesTextilecouching (embroidering)laid work18th Centuryembroideringplain weaving
About
This very distinctive sampler is part of a group that cannot be identified with a specific schoolmistress but was certainly made in the seacoast town of Marblehead, Massachusetts. The elegantly dressed figures of the man with his hat in his hand and the lady holding flowers are reoccurring motifs found in other Marblehead samplers.