$1,185
Mary Ann M. Locke's Needlework Sampler and Paper Cutwork Reward of Merit, Lyman, Grafton County, New Hampshire, 1826 and c. 1846, the sampler stitched with silk threads on a linen ground with rows of alphabets over a basket of fruit, tulips, an urn of flowers, birds, heart, and geometric designs, and a pious verse with backward letters, misspelled words, and unusual inclusion of the maker's name in the verse reading: "Jesus permit thy gracious name to stand/As the first Effort of Mary Anne's hand/And whilst her fingers o'er this canss moove/Engage her tender heart to seek they love," dated "AD 1826," all enclosed in a sawtooth border, (toning fading), 11 1/4 x 16 1/4; together with a cut and wove paper reward of merit in a quatrefoil design of four hearts in blue and yellow woven with white paper, with the inscriptions "Approbation M.A.E./M.A. Locke Instructress," 4 1/2 x 3 1/4 in., both in original or period giltwood frames. Note: This sampler was stitched by ten-year-old Mary Ann M. (Minot) Locke, who went on to become a teacher herself. Mary Ann, the daughter of David and Florinda Locke, was born on March 29, 1816, in Lyman, Grafton County, New Hampshire. She married Stephen Farnsworth in 1839 and died on April 29, 1848, at the age of 32. The cutwork paper reward of merit, executed by Mary Ann, was given to one of her students.
Auctioneer:
Skinner
Date:
2012-08-12
