This is one of three American needlework pocketbooks that came out of a house in Massachusetts. Each of the wallet or pocketbooks beautifully represents a different decade of our history. This early needlework pocketbook, is a scarcely found half-fold with two inner pockets. Embroidered in silk thread onto card-enforced canvas. It is edged with early braided cord and handstitched throughout. Peggy thinks the lining is pale blue watered silk moiré but it is in such good condition that it might be linen or have some linen worked into it. The needlework is in a flame-stitch design and done in gold, brown, blue, green and grey, beige silk threads. The needlework is all satin stitch with the entry & exit holes staggered to follow the up and down movement of the flamestitch. The pocketbook is in excellent condition with a few areas where the thread holding the cord to the edges has come loose—all shown in the photos. If there is thread-loss in the body of work, we haven’t found it. The lining has collected enough atmospheric grime to have changed the color a bit and made it look a little dirty on the inside. You can also see in the photos that the lining has a few moisture stains. Inside the pockets you see the original color of the lining that has not collected grime. All three pocketbooks we are offering (separately) are really in extraordinary condition for a textile item of the period. They all show some fairly insignificant bit of wear but they must not have been used for long. This great textile measures 4 1/8” x 6 3/8” when folded. Opened flat it measures 6 3/8” x 8 ¼.” Circa 1800.

#7144    $2150