Needlework Mourning Sampler

Needlework Mourning Sampler, "Wrought by Rebekah Richardson Aged 13 yrs Woburn July 1808," Massachusetts, worked in silk threads on a linen ground, the lower register depicting a house beside a weeping willow, an urn-topped monument inscribed "In memory of Thomas Richardson," and a pious verse regarding the death of an infant, below a central reserve of alphabet panels, surrounded on three sides with a flowering vine, (fading and light stains), 21 1/2 x 17 1/4 in. , in a period molded wood frame with gilt liner. The sampler has been professionally conserved, probably cleaned, stitched to an acid free fabic and backing. There are some areas of light stains especially in the upper register, no stitch losses noted.