Embroidered sampler

Art Historical Context

Step into the early 19th-century world of American domestic arts with *Embroidered Sampler* by Mary Sprague Bingham, created in 1823. This delicate piece, measuring 14½ x 15 inches, is crafted from silk embroidered with silk threads, showcasing the meticulous needlework skills expected of young women. Housed in The American Wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, it was generously bequeathed by Mabel Herbert Harper in 1957. Samplers like this were essential educational tools for girls in colonial and early federal America, serving as both practice for embroidery techniques—such as cross-stitc...