Sampler

Period1828

Place MadeU.S.A.

MediumPlied, flat, and unraveled silk thread on linen

Dimensions22.5 × 23.5 in. (57.2 × 59.7 cm)

SignedThe sampler is signed and dated "Worked by Lydia S. Barnes AD 1828."

ClassificationsNeedlework

Credit LineGift of Mrs. Julia Hartshorne Trask, 1946

Object number2084.1

DescriptionA large square sampler worked in plied, flat, and unraveled plied silk thread on gauzy natural linen in dark green, grass green, medium green, light green, bright sky blue, lemon yellow, pale peach, light pink, purple, lilac, dark brown, and off white. The embroidery is worked in a variety of stitches, including cross, tent, satin, chain, and basket. In the upper half of the sampler is worked the verse "PETITION / Jesus permit Thy Gracious name to stand / As the First effort of a youthful hand; / And while her fingers on the canvafs [sic] move / Engage her tender heart to seek Thy Love: / With Thy dear Children Let her have a part / And write Thy name Thyself upon her heart / Worked by Lydia S. Barnes AD 1828." Surrounding the verse and inscription is an exuberant grapevine, the leaves of which are worked in pale green with boldly contrasting dark green outline stitching. Lush bunches of grapes still retain much of their original purple and lilac coloration. The lower half of the sampler includes a large fruit basket, with a peach, an apple, a small cluster of strawberries, and two bunches of grapes with leaves and tendrils overflowing the rim of a straight-sided woven basket sporting two loop handles, worked in basket stitch, resting atop a small grassy base. Small floral basket elements are stitched on the left and right sides of the linen panel between the verse and basket. Along the bottom edge at right is worked a small floral spray, while in the lower left corner is a commercially printed cutout of a wooly ram, held in place with small tack stitches. Along the left, top, and right edges is embroidered a brightly-colored flowing floral vine, the sky blue and bright yellow blossoms possibly depicting forget-me-nots. On close inspection, evidence of original inking for the sampler design can be seen, particularly beneath and around portions of the outer floral border and beneath the grape bunches in the verse border. All four edges of the sampler have been sewn to sturdy woven cotton tape as reinforcement for the panel's original framing. The left and right sides of the linen panel retain the selvedge, while the top and bottom edges have been narrowly hemmed. Dark staining can be seen around the small tack holes along all four edges, from the sampler's original framing mount.
Curatorial RemarksThis beautifully worked sampler, once attributed to the Litchfield, Connecticut, area, is now thought to originate in the Mercer County, New Jersey, region. There are a number of stylistic and design similarities to those needlework pieces associated with the Eliza Rue School in Pennington including the large basket of fruit and flowers, the grapevines, and the wide boldly-worked border. Sampler maker Lydia Barnes most certainly received excellent needlework instruction from an unidentified teacher, and was herself a talented embroiderer particularly when considering she was nine when she completed this piece. Several areas of her stitching appear to have been done with silk thread that was originally plied, or twisted, but was unraveled, giving those areas a particular "kinked" or textured appearance. Faint inked lines can be clearly seen under many areas of the sampler, indicating that the design was drawn onto the linen, either by Lydia or her instructress, prior to embroidery. Lydia may also have given evidence of her sense of humor: the stitch she chose for the woven basket in her fruit depiction is, in fact, named the basket stitch. Lydia's sampler also contains an interesting oddity. In the lower left corner is a paper cutout of a wooly ram, commercially printed, dwarfed by the immense fruit arrangement.NotesPreviously thought to have been made in Litchfield County, Connecticut, a reexamination of this sampler indicates its origin in or around the Trenton, New Jersey. The maker has now been identified as Lydia S. Barnes. Lydia was born in 1819 in Trenton, the daughter of Isaac and Mary Barnes. She married physician John Lloyd Taylor (1811 - 1879) on June 6, 1839. The couple lived in Trenton and had four children: Mary B. (Mrs. Charles Haight), George, John Lloyd Jr., and Gilbert Lowery. After her husband's death in 1879, Lydia Barnes Taylor moved to Freehold to live with her daughter. Her obituary of 1898 noted that "she was of a kind, loving disposition and was very much beloved by all her acquaintances."

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