Miniature Sampler
American or English, circa 1825
A fine miniature sampler with the most excellent advice, this reads, “Endeavour to derive some Instruction or Improvement from every thing which you see, or hear, or which occurs in human life.” This was written by Ellin Devis (1746 – 1820), an English schoolmistress and author of The Accidence or First Rudiments of English Grammar Designed for the use of Young Ladies, first published in London in 1775, with many subsequent editions. This is thought to have been the first English grammar book written specifically for female students.
The initials SS at the end are likely those of the samplermaker. While we can’t be certain where the sampler was made, the linen ground fabric suggests an American origin.
Worked in silk on linen, the sampler is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted into a later 19th century frame.