Harriot Whaymand

A wonderfully appealing sampler, this was made by Harriot Whaymand who completed it on Christmas Eve in 1810. The handsome, deep pink, four-story house and a highly unusual depiction of a large, spotted wolf-dog vie for one’s attention. Notable is the wolf-dog image that has been documented on Dutch samplers from Middleburg as early as the third quarter of the 18th century. The classic, backward-looking position and spotted coloration indicate to us that Harriot was including this specific sampler motif. 

We also enjoy the unusual two-stanza poem: 

Religion and duty / happy I am taught / And needle work to / their perfection braught 

To read the scripture / In my neighbour’s love / And hope to gain those / heavenly joys above

There were a number of Whaymand families living in Ipswich, Suffolk County, England in the 18th and very early 19th century, and records include one for Harriet Whaymand. Interestingly, Ipswich and Middleburg are both port cities with long histories of mutual trade and the possibility that the wolf-dog motif traveled from Holland to England, via an instructress or a pattern, is intriguing. The sampler shares some other characteristics with other samplers made in Suffolk and Norfolk. We are grateful to Joanne Lukacher for her help with this sampler – both the wolf-dog motif and its connections to Holland, as well as the likely relationship to the Suffolk area. 

Worked in silk on wool, the sampler is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and remains in its fine, original figured maple frame with a gilt liner.

photo of reverse