Hedge Family Mourning Picture

Date1810-1811

Maker Lucy Lee Hedge (b. 1799)

MediumSilk embroidery threads and ink on a silk ground in a gilded wooden frame with reverse painted black and gilded glass mat (visual identification of fibers)

DimensionsFramed: OW 13 5/8" x OH 13 ¾"

Credit LineGift of Marvin (Joe) and Nancy Stone

Object number2009.604.1

DescriptionThis is a square embroidery done in shades of black and gray. At the center of the scene is a young woman wearing a white dress and holding what is either a piece of paper or a handkerchief with a black border. The young woman leans on the rectangular base of a memorial. On the face of the memorial is a plaque that bears the following inscription: “Daniel/Hedge died/March AD 1804/Aged 29 Years/Tempe Howes/died April 16/1805 Aged/65 years.” On top of the rectangular base is an urn, draped with a swag of fabric. A group of smaller graves sits to the left of the young woman. Two trees flank the scene, one being a weeping willow. A forest fills the background. The stitcher has used a variety of stitches (double running, French knots, herringbone, laid long threads, outline, satin, and stipple) alongside inked details to achieve a “printwork” effect.
Label TextThis memorial embroidery was completed by Lucy Lee Hedge (b. 1799) for her grandmother, Temperance Howes, and her father, Daniel Hedge. Lucy completed this embroidery either in 1810 or 1811, at the age of 11. The memorial is an example of "print work," a technique in which schoolgirls worked pictures in grisaille tones in ink and silk threads to mimic printed images.
InscribedDaniel
Hedge died
March AD 1804
Aged 29 Years
Tempe Howes
died April 16
1805 Aged
65 years
ProvenanceGift of Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Stone who lived in New York City. Per Mrs. Stone, mourning picture may have come from Mr. Stone's aunt and uncle who were antique dealers on Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

History of maker:
Lucy Hedge was born October 19, 1799, to Daniel and Mehitable Hodge in Dennis, Massachusetts.