Each year Hands Across the Sea Samplers publishes a sampler which we consider to be not only beautiful but outstandingly so and worthy to be crowned our Queen of the May.
We are pleased to present to you Hannah Green – our Queen of the May for the year 2024. Hannah is a bobby dazzler of a sampler, she glows in her frame!
Available as a printed booklet and as a pdf download. Click HERE for the PDF download.
On March 1, in the year of our Lord 1826, Hannah Green completed her sampler at the age of 12 years. It is a truly stunning sampler. The composition of this sampler is what captures the viewer’s eye, holds their attention, and controls the movement of the eye. Strong artistic compositions are vital to the success of a piece of art (yes schoolgirl samplers are art).
I have spent many hours studying Hannah’s sampler – her work draws you in. We can be affected by a beautiful design without understanding why. There is something about Hannah’s sampler that creates a sense of gentle harmony. The colours that Hannah used in her sampler are rich and vibrant, yet no one hue dominates; there is harmony and balance.
The verse Hannah chose is one of my favourites; this poignant verse always touches me deeply. When I see a sampler with these words, I always stop and study it. However, Hannah’s sampler is such a bobby dazzler that it took me several minutes before I noticed the verse even though it takes centre stage.
“Jesus permit thy gracious Name to stand” is attributed by some to John Newton (1725–1807), best known for the hymn “Amazing Grace”. It is said that he wrote it for his niece’s sampler. It has also been suggested that it was composed by Isaac Watts (1674–1748), also for his niece. Verses found on English samplers between 1750 and 1850 tend to be either from the Bible, Isaac Watt’s religious poetry, or the Wesleyan hymnbook. Religious proverbs and sayings were also much favoured, and those which used a rhyme or a play on words.
The sampler is bordered on three sides by a beautiful meandering border laden with flowers. The bottom section of the sampler features a pastoral scene. An imposing red manor house nestles between two trees. A shepherd and his faithful dog watch over a pasture full of sheep, deer, a red and blue cow, and two peacocks.
The peacocks have their plumage on display. This is not an act of vanity; peacocks fan out their feathers as part of a courtship ritual to attract a mate. Every peacock has a look all his own, made up of distinct colour patterns and “eyespots” scattered across the plumage. When a male courts a female, he spreads out his tail feathers to display his colours and eyespots fully for her to see. Completely fanned out, the tail spreads behind the peacock in a full semicircle, though some peacocks have tails that are bigger than others. Ultimately, the size and the patterns of the tail help her choose whether or not she will mate with him.
Two oversized butterflies hover on each side of the manor house. Celtic mythology regards butterflies as a symbol of the soul. There’s an old Irish saying that goes “butterflies are souls of the dead waiting to pass through purgatory.” They are thought to be able to cross into other realms and also represent transformation, creation, and rebirth.
While butterflies are not mentioned in the Bible, there is a clear link between the transformation of a butterfly and the death and rebirth of Jesus Christ. Just as the butterfly enters its chrysalis to be reborn, Jesus was placed in a tomb after his crucifixion and reborn three days later. Additionally, Christianity says that those who follow Jesus can become reborn, transformed, and free from sin.
Above the red manor house are two large flocks of birds. A large flock of birds usually indicates that the birds are migrating. Due to their ability to soar high in the sky close to the heavens, birds have long been seen as a link between the spirit world or the divine and the earthly realm. Many cultures have also seen them as messengers from the gods. It is thought that birds circling overhead symbolise the never-ending cyclical nature of things. After death comes rebirth, after winter comes spring and after the hard times, the good times always return.
The top section of the sampler is a delight. The flowers in baskets and urns are worked in glorious shades of red, delicious pinks and blues. A true feast for the eye and needle!
It is such a pity that we were unable to discover Hannah’s story. There were too many Hannah Greens born in 1814 for us to pinpoint the young sampler maker. However, we sense that Hannah was a happy child. The motifs and colours she chose for her sampler fill it with sunshine and joy making her a perfect choice for our Queen of the May 2024.
Hannah’s legacy is her sampler, may you have many hours of enjoyment as you recreate this truly beautiful sampler.
The sampler has been reproduced using a palette of 16 colours carefully matched to the colours found on the front of the sampler. The model was stitched using Soie 100.3 from Au Ver à Soie, and we have included below conversions for Soie d’Alger (SDA) and DMC.
Hannah executed her sampler predominantly with cross stitches laid over two threads of linen; only the verse, parts of the butterflies, and the flocks of birds have been worked in cross stitch over one thread of linen. Hannah also used rice and satin stitch. The sampler is suitable for needleworkers of all levels of ability.
With grateful thanks to the Contented Stitcher who lovingly stitched the model. The two bees stitched on the sampler are the mark (signature) of the model stitcher and are not part of the reproduction.
