White-on-white Needlework Sampler in Carved Mahogany Frame, 1766 (linen, cotton & mahogany)

Linen plain weave embroidered with linen and cotton in cutwork, drawn fabric and drawn thread work, shadow work, hollie point, and back, buttonhole, outline, and herringbone stitches; glazed cotton backing, linen bobbin lace (sampler); carved mahogany. Sarah Logan, whose Quaker family lived at Stenton mansion in the Germantown area of Philadelphia, laboriously worked her name, an alphabet, the date, and other tiny motifs in the bottom panel of her sampler. A variety of whitework techniques, called Dresden work, are showcased in the floral pattern unique to Philadelphia. This accomplished demonstration of needlework skill would have been proudly displayed; it retains the most elaborate original frame (not shown) found on an American sampler.