Sampler

This unusually large sampler with a meandering floral border depicts a pastoral landscape in which wild and domesticated animals—cows, sheep, dogs, and birds—peacefully coexist. It is related to a group of pictorial compositions known today as “Shady Bower” samplers. The heart and trefoil bands, as well as the checkered sawtooth border, appear frequently in samplers produced around Newburyport, Massachusetts. Undoubtedly a teacher in the area created the designs, which were used in samplers by several of her students. Born in Newburyport on October 19, 1786, Anne Moulton—also known as Nancy Moulton—was one of 12 children of the American silversmith Joseph Moulton (1744–1816) and his wife Abigail Noyes Moulton (1744–1818). Moulton made this sampler when she was 10. However, she never fully completed it. For some unknown reason, she neglected to stitch several of the floral designs that appear in the lower quarter of the sampler. Her omission provides us with insight into the needleworker’s process and the relationship between the teacher, who most likely drew the design, and her student.