Page 31 - Demo

Edith Spencer, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, 179827The refined delicacy of this sampler places if firmly in the body of excellent needlework that was taught to young ladies throughout the second half of the 18th century in Philadelphia and its environs. Edith Spencer, born on December 16, 1785, was from a prominent Quaker family living in Montgomery County, just north of the city. Her parents, John Spencer (1756-1799) and Lydia Foulke (b.1756) were married at Gwynedd Meeting in 1783, and Edith was the second of their nine children. She may have attended a school in Philadelphia, perhaps while she stayed with her relatives in town, or certainly a talented instructress may have been teaching in Moreland, near the Spencer family homestead. Edith worked a sampler with a compelling and direct nature. The Lord%u2019s Prayer was carefully stitched above the inscription which is contained within a freeform vine and berry enclosure. A four-sided border of various, stylized large flowers on a rhythmic vine frames the sampler well and leaves no doubt as to Edith%u2019s aptitude as a needleworker. This border echoes the very fine bands and borders found on Philadelphia samplers from earlier in the 18th century.Quaker records, published genealogies and other family papers provide further information about the Spencer family, which traces its presence in America to Samuel Spencer (1672-1705), a merchant from Ireland who bought land north of Philadelphia. The Foulke family was equally deeply rooted in the area, beginning with Edith%u2019s great-great grandfather, Edward Foulke, a Welshman, who came to Pennsylvania in 1698 with his wife and children. He purchased a tract of 700 acres outside of Philadelphia and by 1700 had joined the newly established Friends Meeting, becoming an active leader and supporter. Edith remained single and in 1857 transferred her membership to the Abington Monthly Meeting, also in Montgomery County, which recorded her death in 1865. The sampler descended in the family for many generations. Worked in silk on fine linen gauze, the sampler is in excellent condition, with very slight loss to the outer geometric edging. It has been conservation mounted and is in a painted frame with a black bead. Sampler size: 15%u00be%u201d x 14%u201d Frame size: 19%u00bd%u201d x 17%u00be%u201d Price: $8000.