Maker's Age ~ 13 years old, born ca.1825
Dimensions 14 ¾ x 11 ¼ inches
Medium Silk on linen with cross and four-sided stitches; thread count: 40/inch horizontal, 36/inch vertical
Provenance Made by Mary McGuire ca.1838-1839. The sampler was sold by The Ohio Company: Antiques and Art (date unknown). It was in the Collection of Jane D. Diehl, Cincinnati, Ohio when sold at Cowan's Auctions, Americana Live Salesroom, June 21, 2015, lot #81. It was gifted to The Speed Art Museum by Mrs. Harry S. Frazier, Jr. in 2015.
Description The sampler has eight rows of alphabets and numbers separated by moderately decorative crossbands with a circumferential peripheral vine and leaf border. At the bottom left is the verse:
Let truth and virtue be our guide
Let education be our aim
And let us ever more abide
By sweet religion and not by fame
At the lower right is the signature:
Mary McGuire
Nazareth Academy
In August, 2021, AKS received images of Mary McGuire’s student record card from the SCN Archival Center, Nazareth, Kentucky showing that Mary was a student from July 17, 1838 through July 18, 1839 when she was thirteen years old, and that her parents resided in Cincinnati, Ohio. (see ancillary images)
Despite efforts, AKS currently has no other definitive information regarding Mary McGuire or the genealogy of her family.
Owner/History of Owner/Credit Line The Speed Art Museum by gift from Mrs. Harry S. Frazier, Jr.
AKS Catalog Number 2020-077
Sources Speed Art Museum Data files
Sisters of Charity Nazareth, Nazareth, Kentucky
