Sampler
Period1828
Place MadeNew Jersey, U.S.A.
MediumSilk on linen
DimensionsFramed: 20 × 19 in. (50.8 × 48.3 cm)
ClassificationsNeedlework
Credit LineGift of Mary Dawley Herberich, 2019
Object number2019.15.3
DescriptionA rectangular sampler worked on natural linen, using silk threads in shades of green, blue, and ivory. In the center of the sampler, a leafy oval medallion surrounds the inscription "A. D. 1828 / M. Horner's / Work Aged / 11 Years." The central oval is flanked by floral baskets. Above, the verse "When reason as the helm appears / Which grace the heav'nly pilot steers / The bark runs steady tho' the tempests roar / And brings us safely to a peaceful shore" is worked in dark brown, flanked by stylised floral urns. A small stylized foliate band separates verse from signature oval. Along the lower third of the sampler is a central scene depicting a large central tree, a pair of dogs, and what appears to be two small human figures, the scene flanked on either side by floral sprays. A wide border of a stylized floral vine runs along all four sides, with a narrow sawtooth band worked in ivory silk along the top and sides of the sampler.NotesMary Horner was born on 9 September 1816 in Hornerstown, Upper Freehold Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey. She was one of two children of Fuller Horner (1767-1845) and Damaris Harker Horner (1787-1827). After her mother's death, her father married Penelope Creed Dunphy. Mary Horner created her sampler in 1828 at the age of twelve. She died on 4 November 1832 at the age of 16 and is buried in Emley's Hill Cemetery in Hornerstown, New Jersey.
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