Mercy Field 1833 Chester County, PA

Description

In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Chester County was a prosperous agrarian community, with a well-developed culture, and fertile lands. The Quaker Schools’ influence on samplermaking there (most notably that of the Westtown School), extended beyond their classrooms into private homes, and is reflected in many of the samplers, including Mercy’s. One often sees a very balanced format in samplers made in this region, nicely detailed undulating floral borders, a verse often titled Extract, a variety of stitches other than cross, and often active little scenes in the lower third – in this case an idyllic agrarian scene. Similar satin-stitched grassy mounds with small sheep appear on other Chester County samplers.