Description:

This sampler is very nicely composed and has an almost relaxed, freeform quality to it. Mary stitched a handsome church, presumably Saint Aelhaiarn's Parish Church in Guilsfield where her parents were married and she was baptized. A large house with three doorways, low brick walls and iron fencing balances the church. A wonderful large spotted bird sits amidst the flowers on leafy stems springing from the vessel and two butterflies provide further animation. We can be certain that the instruction that Mary received under the tutelage of Mrs. Brown was of an unusually high level.

Size (W x H): 16 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches

Stitches: Cross, satin

Media: Silk on wool

Genealogy:

Records indicate that Mary was born 23 March 1799, the daughter of Thomas Newton and Catherine Benyon and baptized in Guilsfield, Montgomeryshire. Llandrinio is a village in the north of Wales, on the Severn River, about 15 miles from Guilsfield. Mary married Robert Edwards 30 October 1821 at St. Aelhaiarn, the same church where her parents were wed.

Verse:

Left:
Mary Newton Worked this
Llandrinio School in the
being then 11 years old

Right:
Sampler with Mrs Brown in
Year of our Lord 1811