Madame Tougas 1904 Reproduction Sampler - Couleur Tourterelle

This is an exceptional French sampler in part for its unusual lengthwise format – over four feet wide - but above all because it was stitched by 18 different children: Louise, Eglantine, Joséphine, Léonie, Henriette, Rose, Marguerite, Jeanne, Adèle, Marie-Thérèse, Berthe, Germaine, Hortense, Fernande, Elise, Eugénie, Zoé and Julie!

As indicated in the text, these are all students of Madame Tougas's class, at the local school of Chavigny-Bailleul, in Normandy. Aurélie Tougas* was in fact the teacher's wife, and she had no doubt been put in charge - as was current at the time – of teaching needlework to her husband's girl pupils. This unique sampler shows that she had original ideas and a very good sense of organization to carry out this collective work.

The sampler is very interesting design-wise, with 8 alphabets of varied style, including two, all curves and arabesques, showing Art Nouveau influence - let's not forget that this is 1904.

The smaller generic letters, used for names and school, are derived from the 18th century Linenmaid’s Alphabet, designed for marking laundry and still in use at the time. Note that all complete alphabets include letter W, a modern feature, perhaps the influence of her husband as a teacher?

It was quite a feat organizing a work stitched by 18 pairs of little hands ...

I imagine Madame Tougas decided to start each alphabet on a single line, even if that meant it might be truncated. She then filled in her pupils’ names, managing to fit in all the information without the slightest gap and perfectly balancing the sampler. There is only one single error in the girls’ stitching, the repetition of letters P and Q in the 2nd row.

The original sampler (last image) measures 53” x 16” (135 x 41 cm), it is stitched in cotton on rustic canvas.

Reproduction sampler measures 33 x 12.4 inches (82,5 x 31 cm) and is stitched on 16ct linen.

Stitch Count: 659W x 247H
Linen: Newcastle 40 count - colour 222 Cream
Threads: Au ver a Soie or DMC
Colours: 2

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 ship internationally by airmail to select countries.

For more information on shipping please refer here.

For our full Returns Policy, refer here.

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.

Special orders once placed cannot be changed. You will be asked to provide a deposit if you wish us to order any items especially for you. If you change your mind and decide not to go ahead with the order the deposit is non-refundable.

If a product is faulty, please return it to us along with your docket within 14 days of purchase for a full refund or replacement. There are no returns or exchange on discounted and sale goods. If items have been marked down due to an imperfection it will be identified as such.