c1820 Dutch sampler silk thread on linen ships alphabets geometric borders

A Dutch sampler dating from the early 1800s features sailing ships, alphabets and geometric patterns, plus a large Frisian-style letter “A”. Shiny filament silk threads in a variety of colors including some very deep and bright tones– dark brown, deep rusty red, a lovely vivid turquoise and a greenish yellow-gold. Stitches are cross and backstitch worked with varying thicknesses of silk, so some are fine, flat cross stitches and others are thick and rather lumpy.

Condition is generally good– the linen is quite heavy and very supple, there is no stitch loss but there are some areas of discoloration on the deeply toned ground fabric, especially in the upper and lower thirds. There’s a slubby knot that appears original to the linen threads and woven into the fabric and a couple very small holes. There might be a date in the lower right corner, possibly 1820 or 22, or it may be only be a patterned border in light blue silk.

The sampler measures 11″ wide by 15″ high with folded hems on all four sides. It is unframed and will be shipped loosely folded.