Sampler with geometric patterns, lettering, and various motifs

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This Dutch sampler is an of example a practical working document, with various small patterns and motifs scattered across the surface of the cloth in different orientations making the best use of the available space on the foundation fabric. Apparently the women of Marken Island kept their samplers in or near their kitchens for handy reference. This practice has caused the samplers from this area to be discolored from exposure to the fumes and residue from cooking fires.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art