A RARE NEEDLEWORK SAMPLER: THE 'APPLE TREE' WHITNEY FAMILY RECORD, FOR THE OLIVER WHITNEY AND MERCY WHITCOMB FAMILY, PROBABLY CHARLESTOWN, MASSACHUSETTS, CIRCA 1825

worked in silk stitches on a gauze, linen ground; the design with fat apples and leaves on the tree and a border of blossoms and serrated leaves, a finely worked heart forms the base of the tree and the outline of this heart is worked in tiny buds and leaves with a delicate pair of doves, one with a leafy sprig in its beak, at the top; linen.

Amy Finkel, M. Finkel and Daughter, Philadelphia;
Sheila Rideout, Wiscasset, Maine, 1986;
Susan Burrows Swan, Wilmington, Delaware

Some discoloration and foxing; some fading.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The Whitney family descended from John Whitney, who settled in Watertown, Massachusetts in 1635 (Whitney: The Descendants of John Whitney, Who came from London, England, to Watertown, Massachusetts, in 1635 by Frederick Clifton Pierce, 1895).  Oliver and Mercy's children were born in Marlboro and Lunenberg between 1811 and 1820.

This sampler has been in the personal collection of Susan B. Swan, the long-time curator of textiles and needlework at Winterthur Museum.  It has been published in a scholarly article entitled "Decorated Family Records from Coastal Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Connecticut" by Peter Benes as part of the Dublin Seminar for New England Folklife Annual Proceedings 1985, Families and Children, published by Boston University.  Further genealogical information on the Whitney-Whitcomb family accompanies this lot.

For comparison, see Betty Ring, Girlhood Embroidery, Volume I, p. 79, figs. 79 and 80.