Historical Context

"Like other forms of material culture, samplers are products of a particular society and thus reflect attitudes, expectations, and changes within that society. Samplers are also works of art that not only please modern eyes, but tell us what was considered aesthetically pleasing in the past. More importantly, these examples of plain and decorative needlework illuminate the lives of people often overlooked in written history: the girls and women who lived during the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries."

Schoolgirl samplers and silk embroideries are a window to understanding our history and the above quotation from a book regarding samplers by Kim Smith Ivey of Colonial Williamsburg, well represents the basis for our interests in this fascinating field.

Most of the samplers and silk embroideries that we offer are schoolgirl accomplishments that date from 1760 to 1850, typically worked by girls and young women between the ages of 9 and 16. They attended schools ranging from small enterprises to large female academies, from rural settings to flourishing cities along the eastern seaboard. A sampler might be decorated with the alphabet, numbers, verse or poetry, a house set upon a lawn with pots of flowers and even birds, animals and people. The makers’ name, age, town and the date of completion were frequently included, which of course allows for genealogical research and documentation. From a simple marking sampler to a highly sophisticated fully developed needlework picture, each offering is a reflection of the talents of a specific needleworker. We strive to offer samplers and silk embroideries that represent excellence in needlework at many different levels.

The tradition of sampler making also flourished in the British Isles and we offer samplers and needlework from these areas as well. Dutch darning samplers from the Netherlands and occasionally samplers from France, Spain, Germany and Mexico also become available and many collections embrace examples from different cultures.

This is one of the most fascinating collecting areas in the field of antique decorative arts, and a great deal of sophisticated material has been published in the last twenty years. Because of the importance of documentation in this field, much of our time is spent in research and, of course, the results of our efforts are included with the purchase of each sampler. All of our samplers are sold with a guarantee backed by years of analysis and experience; it is our priority that our clients feel confident in their selections.

For further educational information we highly recommend a new non-profit website devoted solely to the field of samplers, www.antiquesamplers.org.