Hannah White [Vinson] Sampler

Hannah White, née Vinson
American, 1791-1863
Sampler
1799
Cloth and thread

Hannah Vinson was born in Weymouth in 1791. She completed this sampler in 1799 at the age of 8. Samplers are embroidered panels of cloth that demonstrate a variety of stitches. Commonly used as school exercises, samplers often included alphabets, words, and images. This sampler features threads in cream, dark olive green, light pink, light blue, and dark gray, although they have inevitably faded over time. At the top and bottom of the sampler are alphabets. The text in between the alphabets is difficult to read in places, but the name “Hannah,” the date “1799”, and the word “Weymouth” are visible. The word “Memento” also features prominently, and while it is difficult to make out the word after it, it is likely “mori.” Memento mori is Latin for “Remember you must die.” This might seem like an odd phrase for a child to embroider, but it was not unheard of for it to be included in samplers and it often appeared on Puritan tombstones as a reminder of morality and mortality.

Sources

“Memento mori.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/memento%20mori. Accessed 25 November 2020.

"Sampler." Britannica Library, Encyclopædia Britannica, 14 October 2008. https://library.eb.com/levels/referencecenter/article/sampler/65230. Accessed 25 November 2020.