Embroidered Chair Back

Art Historical Context

Step into the refined world of colonial American domestic arts with *Embroidered Chair Back by Mehitable Starkey created between 1755 and 1765. This exquisite linen panel, measuring 32 x 25 inches, was meticulously embroidered with vibrant wool and silk threads, a functional chair component into a showcase of needlework mastery. Housed in The Metropolitan Museum of Art's American Wing, it entered the collection as a gift from Philip Holzer in 2003, celebrating the ingenuity of early American craftswomen. The design bursts with lively motifs—men and women amid deer, animals, and trees—evoking pastoral scenes of leisure and nature that were hallmarks of 18th-century embroidery. Wool provided bold, textured fills for foliage and figures, while silk added shimmering highlights for finer details, a technique rooted in English crewelwork traditions adapted by colonial makers. Such chair backs adorned high-style furniture in prosperous households, blending utility with ornament. Mehitable Starkey's work underscores the cultural significance of women's embroidery in pre-Revolutionary America, where these pieces demonstrated skill, status, and creativity. Far from mere decoration, they preserved storytelling through stitchery, offering a window into the daily lives and aspirations of the era's families. A true gem of American folk art!