Needlework picture (Silkwork picture)

Museum Object Number 1991.0046 A

Object Name

Needlework picture (Silkwork picture)

Title

Calliope and Clio

Category

Textiles (Needlework)

Credit Line/Donor

Museum purchase with funds provided by the Special Fund for Collection Objects

Creator (Role)

Sarah Skinner Ward (Maker)

Samuel Folwell (Artist)

Miss Sarah Maltby (School mistress)

Creator Notes

Sarah Catherine Skinner (Ward) worked this silk on silk needlework picture between 1810 and 1813 while attending Miss Sarah Maltby's School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Sarah was born on August 15, 1796 in Philadelphia. Her father was William Skinner. No documentation has been found on Sarah's father in Philadelphia at the time she would have worked this piece. A widowed Elizabeth Skinner was living in the city at that time and could be a possible relation who hosted Sarah while she engaged in her studies. A number of Skinners appear to have shared addresses in Philadelphia, residing at them simultaneously as well as across different years. Sarah married Nahum Ward on October 21, 1817 in Marietta, Washington, Ohio. Sarah died on August 4, 1844.Samuel Folwell (1764-1813) married Ann Elizabeth Gebler (1773-1824). Elizabeth operated an embroidery school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania before her children were born. The patterns for her embroidered pictures were drawn and painted by her husband, who was an artist and engraver. Their son Godfrey (1799-1855) began drawing at an early age. He was 14 years old when his father died in 1813. He began copying some of his father's patterns to help his mother as she continued teaching to support the family. Both father and son drew patterns for other teachers as well. Godfrey's work is occasionally difficult to distinguish from Samuel's work. By 1819, Godfrey Folwell appeared in the Philadelphia directory as "G. Folwell teacher of fancy drawing," and although signed pieces by his father have not been found, at least two embroideries, including the one in Winterthur's collection, are known to bear Godfrey's signature. (Ring, Betty. "Girlhood Embroidery," Vol. II, pp. 378-387.)Between 1802 and 1816 city directories list a widowed Sarah Maltby living within a block of the Folwells' Dock Street School, where Folwell's wife, Ann Elizabeth Gebler, taught embroidery. Living in close proximity to the Folwell School, Miss Maltby would likely have access to Folwell designs. It is known that Samuel Folwell painted designs to be executed at other schools than his, but he was dead by 1813, so this design must date between 1805 and 1813.

Date of Birth

179603/10/1764

Date of Death

184411/25/1813

Place of Origin

Pennsylvania, Mid-Atlantic, United States, North America

Secondary Place of Origin

Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Mid-Atlantic, United States, North America

Secondary Origin Notes

Sarah Skinner (Ward) worked this picture while attending Miss Sarah Maltby's School in Philadelphia. Samuel Folwell of Philadelphia, designed and painted this picture.

Date

1810-1813

Subjects

Mythological; George Washington

Materials

Silk; Watercolor; Linen; Gilt; Chenille; Paint

Techniques

Embroidered, Painted, Woven (plain)

Construction Description

Hand-embroidered, hand-painted

Dimensions (inches)

18.375 (L) , 24.75 (W)

Dimensions (centimeters)

46.672 (L) , 62.865 (W)

Measurement Notes

Measurement of needlework by sight, in frame. H at left. W at bottom. Measurement of modern frame: 25.500" H x 31.500" W x 1.250" D Measurement of original glass: 21.500" L x 27.500" W

Object Description

Text available soon.

Bibliography and Bibliographic Notes

[Book] Swan, Susan Burrows. 1995 Plain and Fancy: American Women and their Needlework, 1650-1850.
• Published: p. 166, pl. 32
[Article] Deutsch, Davida. 02//1981 Samuel Folwell of Philadelphia: An artist for the needleworker. Antiques. 119: 420-423.
• Design source: p. 412, fig. 2