Sampler
Maker
Harriet Farnham
Periodca. 1815
MediumPlied and flat silk thread on linen with diaper weave cotton backing
Dimensions15.5 × 12.63 in. (39.4 × 32.1 cm)
SignedThe sampler is signed "Harriet Farnham Born Sept 3."
ClassificationsNeedlework
Credit LineGift of Mrs. Julia Hartshorne Trask, 1946
Object number2084.16
DescriptionA rectangular sampler on rough woven linen in both plied and flat silk threads in cross, Algerian eyelet, and satin stitches. The plied silk thread appears in medium green, pale green, light blue, dull pink, tan, and off white. The flat silk thread colors include six shades of green from dark forest green to pale apple green, medium blue, light sky blue, medium brown, golden tan, pale dull pink, pale yellow, and off white. The upper two thirds of the sampler is made up of two alphabets. The first, a three-fourths inch upper case alphabet, runs from A to J on the first row, K through S on the second, and T through Z on the third line. The fourth and fifth lines contain a 5/8 inch upper case italic alphabet, from A through L and M through U. All five lines are separated by narrow cross stitch bands in a variety of patterns. Below the alphabet lines is the verse "Jesus permit Thy Gracious / Name To stand as the First / Effort Of an Infant Hand." The "t" in "First" floats just above the "s," in an effort to fit all the letters. Below the verse is the signature "Harriet Farnham Born Sept 3." The lower third of the samper features a pictorial scene entirely worked in flat silk, depicting a striped black and white urn topped with floral sprays, flanked by two large fruiting trees. Urn and trees rest upon a shaded grassy lawn. Animals, most likely deer including three adult deer and a fawn, graze between urn and trees. On close inspection, inked pattern lines are clearly visible beneath many areas of the pictoral scene elements. A stylized strawberry vine border is worked along the left, top, and right sides of the sampler. A single row of cross stitches forms an edging along the right, left, top, and bottom of the linen panel. A lining of diaper woven cotton has been added to the linen panel.Curatorial RemarksThis sampler bears a resemblance to a number of samplers worked in and around Newburyport and Haverhill, Massachusetts, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In particular, it appears closely related to the sampler illustrated on page 120, volume 2 of Betty Ring's Girlhood Embroidery: American Samplers & Pictorial Needlework, 1650 - 1850 (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1993). Common features included the strawberry vine border on three edges only, the placement of the pictorial scene in the lower third of the sampler, and the extensive use of flat silk. Although the area had a relatively small population base, it nonetheless supported several girls' schools and needlework instructresses. Harriet Farnham's sampler was most likely made in or around 1815 when Harriet was eleven. It features a pictorial scene worked entirely in flat silk thread. Flat silk, while creating a lovely sheen, is a notoriously difficult thread to work with, snagging and tangling easily. Harriet would have needed a laying tool, a needle-like implement used to smooth and stroke the silk filaments. This sampler includes an interesting backing treatment. A length of diaper woven cotton was added after the alphabets, verse, signature, and borders were embroidered. The panel reveals that the flat silk pictorial scene was embroidered after the cotton fabric was added in order to stabilize and strengthen the relatively flimsy linen. The edges of both panels were folded under and then whipstitched together along all four edges.NotesHarriet Farnham recorded on her sampler that she was born on "Sept 3," but neglected to include the year. A Harriet Farnham from Newburyport, Essex County, Massachusetts, was born on 30 September 1804, a daughter of David Farnham and his wife Martha. These are believed to be the same girl, as an examination of the sampler reveals that she ran out of room for the zero and year of her birth. Harriet of Newburyport married on 8 August 1824 to Jacob Horton (1798 - 1876). They became the parents of at least three children. The 1850 census indicates that the Hortons were still resident in Newburyport.
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