Rare English 17th Century
Embroidered Silk Draw String Purse

This small English 3.25-inch embroidered silk on silk satin in the 17th century was most likely done by a young girl as an exercise to improve her needlework skills. There is a similar bag in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum that was found in a young girl's embroidered casket (box for special items) to hold personal possessions, possibly coins. Another theory is that bags such as this were made to be given as gifts to someone special. At 3.25-inches and of such fragile materials it was obviously not meant to be used for practical purposes. The decoration embroidered upon it was either copied from a pattern book or the individual pattern might have been purchased. Early embroidered motifs generally tell us something about the maker. In this case the acorn could represent the patience the young embroiderer was to learn or it might be representative of how her savings would grow from its start as a seedling. The condition of this bag is very good to excellent with minor wear to the silk satin. The bag is bound with a combination of braided silk and metallic threads.

621-3

Price: $4,450

If you are interested in buying this item, please call (978) 597-8084 or email David Hillier at drh@aaawt.com or Lynn Morin at lfm@aaawt.com

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