Sampler
Polly Bedford
1791
Medium
Wool, plain weave; embroidered with silk floss and silk yarns in back, chain, Cretan, individual back, individual running, Roman, satin, stem, and surface satin stitches; laid work, couching, and Roumanian couching
Dimensions
42.9 × 43.7 cm (16 7/8 × 17 1/4 in.)
Classification
needlework (visual works)
Department
Textiles
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
107913
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This very distinctive sampler is part of a group that cannot be identified with a specific schoolmistress but was certainly made in the seacoast town of Marblehead, Massachusetts. The elegantly dressed figures of the man with his hat in his hand and the lady holding flowers are reoccurring motifs found in other Marblehead samplers.