Needlework Sampler "Ruhamah Dearbon [sic ],"

Needlework Sampler "Ruhamah Dearbon [sic]," Portsmouth, New Hampshire, 1819, worked in silk threads on a green linen ground, composed of four alphanumeric rows above two poems, a pictorial register with farmhouse and fence, and maker's name, age, location, and date below, 15 1/2 x 17 in. (sight), in a molded giltwood frame.

Note: According to research performed for the consignor, Ruhamah Dearborn was born in Portsmouth on March 25, 1805, the fourth of eight children, and lived at the "Old Dearborn Mansion" in the Christian Shore area of Portsmouth. She died in Portsmouth in 1887.

Literature: For an overview of Portsmouth samplers, their makers, and the extensive network of schools and teachers, see In Female Worth and Elegance by John F. LaBranche and Rita F. Conant, Peter E. Randall Publisher, 1996. Several examples stylistically similar to this work are pictured.
The Collection of Gail & Don Piatt