Sampler

1814

Linen, silk

Overall: 7 1/2 x 7 1/2 in. ( 19 x 19 cm )

INV.12004

Mary Martin's sampler, dedicated to Colonel Henry Rutgers, was probably presented to him in gratitude for his role as benefactor of the Free School Society. In 1811, the Society opened its second building on a site in Henry Street donated by Rutgers. Founded in 1805 by DeWitt Clinton, the Free School Society established "a Free School in the City of New York, for the education of such poor children as do not belong to, or are not provided for, by a religious society." A Quaker group, the Association of Women Friends for the Relief of the Poor, known as the Female Association, conducted schools for girls under the auspices of the Free School Society. Mary Martin's diminutive sampler, with its stylized baskets of flowers, floral borders, and black lettering resembling engraved printing, is characteristic of Female Association School needlework.

DescriptionSquare sampler worked on plain weave linen with various colors of silk thread; inscriptions at top and bottom, verse in center, strawberry-vine border at left and right, fruit basket motifs in upper corners and vase of flower motifs at lower corners; cross and satin stitches.

SignedEmbroidered at bottom in brown floss: "Mary A Martin aged 12. / Female Association School."

MarkingsEmbroidered at top in brown floss: "For Colonel Henry Rutgers"

ClassificationsTEXTILES