BETSY DAVIS 1797 - The Scarlet Letter

BETSY DAVIS 1797

Made in Providence, Rhode Island, this sampler is a superb example of the work done at Miss Mary (Polly) Balch’s school, one of the most important female learning institutions in America at that time. Combining sophisticated architectural, landscape and figural motifs with elaborate and unusual stitch variations, including filled-in tapestry-like woven backgrounds, this group of samplers is one of the finest known in the American tradition.

Although the school is not named on the sampler, recurring themes in verse and design make the Balch School samplers quite easy to recognize. The “archway” motif was one of the most popular patterns at Miss Balch’s school and was incorporated into many samplers made by her pupils from 1785 until at least 1797 when Betsy Davis stitched hers. Architectural columns enclose the pictorial central reserve surrounded on three sides by the distinctive Balch School queen stitched flowers springing from two urns on the lower left and right sides.

The verse- one that appeared frequently on Balch samplers- is announced by trumpeting angels. A three storied house and several fashionably dressed figures, and animals, complete the five tiered scenes.

Stitches used in this sampler include cross (over one and two threads of linen), half cross, satin and stem filling, backstitch and queen stitched. Stitched on 25 count linen the finished reproduction will measure approximately 13″ x 15″, very close to the size of the original sampler which is in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

The project is recommended for more advanced needleworkers. The chart is printed in full color.

Copyright by The Scarlet Letter. Description thanks to Marsha

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Shipping Costs

The shipping cost of your order depends on your location and the value/size of your order. Shipping costs are added to your order total before payment is processed, and include a small packaging fee to cover costs.

As a guide, within Australia a standard letter has a minimum postage of A$4.90. Orders over A$30.00 are sent by Parcel Post (A$12.65) due to the weight/thickness of the parcel, and to allow tracking. Orders over A$80.00 are sent by Express Post. This protects both you and us, as the order can be tracked.

Express Post within Australia: A$10.70 for an A5 letter, A$16.15 up to 500 grams, A$20.75 up to 1kg, A$25.30 up to 3kg, and A$33.30 up to 5kg.

Actual Configured Shipping Rates (from Shopify settings)

This section is generated from our live Shopify shipping configuration, so it always reflects what a customer is actually charged at checkout - useful to compare against the descriptions above.

Domestic (all Australian states and territories):
- Orders under A$30.00: A$5.50 (Envelope)
- Orders A$30.00 - A$79.99: A$12.65 (Standard)
- Orders A$80.00 and over: A$16.15 (Express)
- Express shipping is also available as an option on any order, for a flat A$16.15, regardless of order value.

International Shipping

We offer regular and Express Post within Australia and New Zealand, and ship internationally to select countries.

International orders are sent by the most economical airmail post. If the actual cost of postage is less than what was calculated, we will refund the difference. If you would like to insure your parcel (at your own expense), please let us know at the time of ordering.

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Missing or Delayed Parcels

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When purchasing from The Crewel Gobelin please review your order carefully as we do not refund or exchange if you have a change of mind about your purchase. To protect the interests of our designers, exchange or refund is not available on books, charts and kits. This also applies to custom finished items, special orders and fabric cut to your specifications, these items cannot be returned unless there is a fault in the product.

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