Sampler
EmbroidererEmbroidered by
Lucy Ripley
(American, 1789 - 1846)
FramerFramed by
A. D. Vorce & Co.
(American)
Date1802
MediumEmbroidery; silk thread on a plain-woven, undyed linen ground; wood, metal, cardboard, paper
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (height x width): 16 1/2 x 12 7/8in. (41.9 x 32.7cm)
ClassificationsTextiles
Credit LineGift of Emily Strickland
DescriptionSampler worked in dark green, black, gold, dark brown, cream, pink and mint silk threads on a plain-woven linen ground using cross stitch over two threads and other stitches. The sampler is rectangular, oriented vertically. It is laid out with four rows of two alphabets and the numbers 1 through 13, over two inscriptions, over an alphabet, over a wide horizontal band of a floral/vine design, over two inscriptions. The first inscription is "Lucy Ripley aged 13 years". The second inscription is "Hartford August 4th 1802". The third inscription is a religious verse, "Jesus permit thy gracious name to stand/ As the first effort of an infants hand/ And while her fingers o'er this canvas move/ Engage her tender heart to feel thy love/ With thy dear children let her share a part/ And write thy name thyself upon her heart". The fourth inscription is "The world my dear mary is full of deceit/ And friendship's a jewel we seldom can meet/ How strange does it seem that in searching around/ This source of content is so rare to be found". Certain rows of alphabets, numbers and text are separated by straight or meandering horizontally stitched lines in a variety of stitches; the sampler has four horizontal sawtooth satin-stitched lines. The center of the sampler has a horizontal border consisting of a jagged line with upward and downward pointing flowers in the peaks and valleys of the line. There are at least two diamonds, a crown, and a heart on the sampler. The sampler has a decorative four-sided border.
The sampler has a 3/16-inch double-turned (probably) hem on the top, bottom and right edges, and a selvedge on the left edge. The sampler is not framed. The sampler sits atop a piece of paper or cardboard; both the sampler and the paper or cardboard are attached to the original strainer, or wooden mount, with evenly spaced nails. The back of the sampler is not visible.
Letters and Numbers: There are three alphabets and the numbers 1-13. The letters are uppercase block in alphabet 1, lowercase block in alphabet 2, and uppercase script in alphabet 3. The letter J is present in the first alphabet only. The letter U is present in alphabets 1 and 2; it is not present in alphabet 3. The letter "s" is repeated twice in the lowercase alphabet; the first is a long 's'. The third alphabet starts on line 7 (A-W) and ends on line 2 (X-Z). In the fourth inscription the word "around" is worked as "arou" with the "nd" placed immediately above the "ou". The maker uses long 's'.
Stitches: The principal stitch on the sampler is cross stitch (over two); it also includes cross (over one), satin and Algerian eye stitches.
Condition: The sampler has faded slightly. The ground is intact but yellowed. The sampler is not framed.
The sampler has a 3/16-inch double-turned (probably) hem on the top, bottom and right edges, and a selvedge on the left edge. The sampler is not framed. The sampler sits atop a piece of paper or cardboard; both the sampler and the paper or cardboard are attached to the original strainer, or wooden mount, with evenly spaced nails. The back of the sampler is not visible.
Letters and Numbers: There are three alphabets and the numbers 1-13. The letters are uppercase block in alphabet 1, lowercase block in alphabet 2, and uppercase script in alphabet 3. The letter J is present in the first alphabet only. The letter U is present in alphabets 1 and 2; it is not present in alphabet 3. The letter "s" is repeated twice in the lowercase alphabet; the first is a long 's'. The third alphabet starts on line 7 (A-W) and ends on line 2 (X-Z). In the fourth inscription the word "around" is worked as "arou" with the "nd" placed immediately above the "ou". The maker uses long 's'.
Stitches: The principal stitch on the sampler is cross stitch (over two); it also includes cross (over one), satin and Algerian eye stitches.
Condition: The sampler has faded slightly. The ground is intact but yellowed. The sampler is not framed.
Object number1939.8.2
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