Needlework Picture by Martha Dandridge Ball
Date1810-1820
Artist/Maker
Martha D. Ball
(1799 - 1822)
MediumSilk threads and watercolor on a worsted wool ground of 50 x 48 threads per inch (fiber identification by eye)
DimensionsOH 12 5/8" x OW 14 7/8"
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1991-595
DescriptionThis is a needlework picture worked in shades of brown, black, gold, blue, and green silk threads on a wool ground with watercolor. In the background is a fortress-type structure surmounted by a flag that sits on a hillock above a two-story house. The house sits next to a river on which sits a sailboat, a rowboat, a group of ducks, and a dock/bridge/wharf in the background. A line that appears to represent a sea wall runs along the right-hand side of the river. To the right of the sea wall is a landscape that contains trees, cows, a man, and a rake. Below the picture is an inscription worked in silk that reads: "Wrought by Martha D Ball". Beneath this and off center to the right in ink or pencil is the inscription, "W Wrought by Martha Dandrige Ball".Stitches: satin, outline, and feather
Label TextMartha Dandridge Ball was the granddaughter of Charles Washington, the youngest brother of George Washington. This scene depicts a landscape that might have been familiar to Martha or one that she saw in a print source.
ProvenanceThis picture was advertised for sale in a 1966 Sloan's Art Galleries catalog as being from either the Dyke Cullum Farm of Germantown, Maryland, or from the collection of Mr. and Mrs. Bernard B. Jones of Washington, D.C. and Berryville, Virginia.
History of Maker:
Martha Dandridge Ball was born October 6, 1799, probably at her parent's home Springwood in Loudoun County. Her father was Col. Burgess Ball (b. 1749) who died one year after her birth in 1800. Her mother was Francis Washington (niece of George Washington, daughter of Charles Washington). Where she lived after her father died is not known. Martha married Col. Jonathan Catlett Gibson (1793-1849) and had two daughters, Francis Ann and Martha Dandridge before she died in April 1822.
1805-1820 (ca 1812?)
