This sampler has a lot of very interesting intricate stitching. It is dated 1834 and was stitched by Mary Isabella Reay. The stitching is in very good condition. On the top of the sampler, you have a flower without a stem, a bird sitting on a basket of flowers, a tall thin tree and in the center a house with two chimneys and a green lawn and then another bird on the far side next to the urn and that pattern is repeated on the other side of the house. The house is outlined to show the doors and window. Beneath that row are two deer with antlers who are sitting on a patch of grass, two flowerpots with tall plants, a smaller flowerpot in the center with tall flowers and a dog or lion on top of that. The next few rows have the words:
Fair Star of Eve. thy lucid ray Directs my thoughts to realms on high Great is the theme though weak thy lay, For my heart whispers, God is nigh. There are urns on either side of the saying and below that is a school house with a flag, steps and grass. Her name is stitched in beige thread: Mary Isabella Reay, 1834 and above her name are flowers with a pretty flower pot in the middle. On the far right of her name is another big flower tree. The entire sampler has a green vine with flowers surrounding the entire sampler. The detail is incredible and the stitching is very good. It is housed in the original frame and looks to have never been removed from that frame. The top half of the sampler is a bit dark from age and there is only one very small hole on the top right side below the bird. The original paper has been removed from the back exposing the thin original fabric backing of the sampler. There is not a wood backing to this frame, it is just the sampler and a cloth backing held in by the frame. This is a great sampler and has so many nice details like the house, the school house, flowers and the deer. It took a lot of work for this young lady to complete this work. A great addition to any primitive antique or sampler collection.
Photographs were taken with the glass in place that gives some glare to the pictures. I have not removed this sampler from the frame.
It measures: 13.25 inches long by 14 inches wide in the frame. By Sight: 12 X 12.5 inches.
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