One script alphabet with letters colored in pairs; no "J"; three rows separated by simple crossbands. Below verse, three flowering plants (one in vase) and two-story building with four chimneys standing next to tree on hill. Center section outlined by three sawtoothed bands and short strawberry-vine band. Border of wide geometric flowering vine on top and two sides, and band of shaded satin stitches across bottom. Silk embroidery thread on linen ground. STITCHES: cross, crosslet, chain, detached chain, petit point, outline, satin, hem. THREAD COUNT: warp 32, weft 28/in.
Inscriptions:
"The fairest flower will soon decay
Its fragrant loose and splended hue
So youth and beauty wear away
And vanish is the morning dew
Sukey Fosters Work
Wrought in the tWelfth
Year of her age
Cambridge
August 20 1803"
Background:
Sukey was born on March 10, 1791, to James and Sukey Foster in Hopkinton, Massachusetts. She married William Adams on September 17, 1818, and they had four children—Susan Ann, William, Hannah Foster, and Mary Jane. Sukey died in West Cambridge, Massachusetts, on September 13, 1846. Her sampler descended in the family of her son William.
Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.
If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.