Sampler by Unknown Maker

Date1800-1850

MediumCotton yarn, silk backing and ribbon, and unidentified sewing thread (cotton identified by textile lab)

DimensionsOW 3" x OL 35 1/2 (without ties), 46" (with ties)

Credit LineGift of Anonymous Donors

Object number1971-1659,2

DescriptionThis is a white knitting sampler with twenty-three lace patterns. Each pattern is separated by one row of stockinette. The sampler is backed with two pieces of pink silk and bound with pink silk ribbons. A single length of white silk ribbon is doubled over and stitched to one of the short ends to form a pair of ties. There are approximately twenty-three stitches per inch. The number "23" is written on the back in pencil.
Label TextThis sampler shows twenty-three lace knitting patterns. By the early nineteenth century, the growing use of knitting machines led to the increased popularity of fancy and open-work patterns. These patterns could not be replicated by machine and clearly demonstrated the skill of the knitter.
Markings"23"
ProvenanceThe last recorded owners of this piece were Mr. and Mrs. Roy Everett Tomlinson. The sampler was earlier in the collectin of Mrs. DeWitt Clinton Cohen.