Antique Samplers

Aged 11 years, circa 1830What first attracted me to this sampler were the “broom ladies” who appear on another one of my reproduction samplers made by Sarah Willson in 1837. At first glance, it appears as if they might be playing bagpipes, but they are indeed holding brooms and offering them for sale. It’s an…

English sampler made in Bradford, Yorkshire (West Riding),showing distinct influence of Scottish design in the illuminated lettering.  Very colorful, very good color and condition apart from some losses the ground now conservation mounted over linen and in its original frame with ultra violet filtering conservation glass.  Stitches used in this lovely little sampler are double running,…

An English sampler employing many unusual stitches and motifs, with exceptionally preserved color.  A bold arcaded four-sided floral border surrounds a central reserve.  At the top is a bank of satin-stitched clouds, followed by a verse cartouche flanked by flying angels.  At the center is a large house on top of a very high hill…

ANN ANTHONY 1838 AGE 10 YEARS A fabulous English sampler in remarkable condition, full of gorgeous, unique (and even strange) beautifully executed motifs. At the top is a two-storied house with a pair of couples on either side enclosed in leafy bowers. Below the house are Adam and Eve flanked by archaic “boxers” and large…

ELIZABETH ROBINSONMay 21, 1834 (?) English sampler in a rosewood veneered frame with three rows of alphabets above a four line pious verse, and in the lower third a scene with flowers, trees and birds. It is stitched in fine wool on linen entirely in cross stitch, with very good color. The linen has suffered…

ELIZABETH FOSTER 1747 English sampler stitched in silk on fine tammy cloth retaining excellent color with two rows of alphabets and three beautiful floral pattern bands with three verses interspersed. The sampler has suffered some losses but is now carefully mounted over modern linen that blends very well with the original ground. There is damage…

An 18th-century English sampler featuring motifs from the 17th century, done in a variety of stitches including cross, double running, diagonal eyelet, queen, petit point, counted satin, and buttonhole. An elegantly dressed lady holding a fan addresses a gentleman with a bouquet of flowers alongside verses from Psalms 13, 14, and 15. Below each figure…

Late 17th/Early 18th Century English/Continental Tent Stitch Picture, circa 1700 Stitched with silk and fine wool on canvas, the scene depicts an elephant pulling a cart through a lush landscape with a mansion house in the distance. The needlework has darkened, but areas of bright silk delineate many of the motifs. There are three small…

CURRENTLY UNDER OFFER GRACE FOWLER 1749 An English George II sampler This petite sampler (8-1/2″ square) is so finely stitched that the thread count must be approximately 55 threads per inch.  It has been executed with cross and tent stitches with silk on fine linen. The color is excellent, the condition is very good apart…

CB: dated 1854   Probably Continental (German or Danish)   This extraordinary spot sampler (I’ve never seen anything like it, in or outside of a museum) is stitched with silk on linen, absolutely covered with Berlin-style vignettes and patterns.  You can see a cat, a large sleeping dog, a leaping trout, an ostrich, two children…

Sampler made in northern England with a three-sided floral border, comprising thirteen lines of alphabet neatly cross stitched in several different styles.  The sampler is in excellent condition, framed in a 19th-century rosewood cushion moulded frame. Preliminary research suggests that Mary Wagstaff was born in Huyton, Lancashire, in 1809.  She possibly died in Warrington under…

This is an English or Scottish sampler completed April 18 (no year noted) stitched with silk threads on homespun linen, incorporating cross, eyelet, four sided and petit point stitches. The unusual borders are composed of alphabets, numerals and sets of initials. The two large alphabets are executed in four sided and eyelet stitches. Five crowns…